Seto Kaiba's New Pet
by edwardsgirl16
Summary: Yugi's cousin visits Domino while her parents are away and gets tricked into becoming Kaiba's pet puppy. Full summary inside...
1. Introductions

**SUMMARY: Basically, Emilee is Yugi's cousin and she comes to Domino because her parents are away on business. Eventually, Joey falls in love with her and Seto Kaiba might have some feelings for her. Some surprises along the way for all!!!**

Name: Emilee Hitachiin

Family: Yugi Mutou (cousin)

Age: 16

Hair: shoulder length; black with burgundy and gold streaks; kept in ponytail most of the time

Outfit: black pants (like the ones everyone else wears, except black), black tanktop, double belts, duel deck, black sneakers

Eyes: violet

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"Hey, Yug!" Joey Wheeler called as he saw Yugi Mutou walking with me down the hall. "Who's your friend?"

"Guys, this is Emilee," Yugi said, walking with me up to Joey, Teá Gardener, and Triston Taylor. "She's my cousin. She's staying with me while her parents are away. Em, this is Teá, Triston, and J—"

"Joey Wheeler, at your service," Joey interrupted, pushing past Yugi. "How old are you anyway? 'Cause you look kinda like Yugi."

"I'm 16," I replied, playing with a strand of my hair.

"At least you're taller than Yugi," Tristan commented.

"Tristan!" Teá hissed, elbowing Triston's arm.

"What? It's true," Triston insisted, rubbing his arm.

"So, you got someone to show you around?" Joey asked as Teá and Triston continued arguing.

"Well, I had hoped Yugi would, but I think he has to go home, so no," I replied. "Why? Do you want to?"

"Yeah! Come on!" Joey exclaimed, grabbing my arm and running off.

"Careful, Joey!" Yugi called after us. "She has somewhere to be after school!"

"Where does she need to be?" Teá asked when she and Triston had finally stopped arguing.

"She's a duelist," Yugi replied. "I didn't tell you? She's wanted to beat Kaiba for awhile now. Thinks he's too arrogant and cocky. So, I got her a duel with him."

"I hope she's ready," Triston said, looking in the direction Joey and I headed. "Yugi, you're the only one who's ever beat him."

"Me, too," Yugi agreed.

"Joey, slow down!" I exclaimed as we almost ran into yet another student. "Where are we going?" Suddenly, a card flew out of my pocket and fluttered to the ground. "My card!" I exclaimed, pulling out of Joey's grip. Reaching down, I grabbed my card and held it tightly as I turned back to Joey.

"Whatcha got there?" Joey asked, holding out his hand for my card.

"One of my most powerful and my favorite cards," I replied, handing it to him. "Red Eyes Black Dragon."

"So, you're a duelist?" Joey asked as I took my card back and put it in my case.

"Uh-huh," I replied, smiling. "Now, you still wanna show me around?"

"You bet!" Joey exclaimed, grabbing my arm and running again. "Come on!"

"He's like a little puppy," I thought. "Energetic all the time."

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"Where were you guys?" Yugi asked as Joey and I walked into his grandpa's gameshop.

"Exploring the city," I replied, smiling. "I just came back to see if you wanted to come watch me duel.

"I would, but I have to watch over the shop while Grandpa is asleep," Yugi replied. "Joey, could you take her? I just want to make sure she gets to Kaiba's safe."

"Sure thing, Yug," Joey answered, then grabbed Yugi's arm and started walking into the back. "I need to talk to ya real quick."

"What is it, Joey?" Yugi asked.

"Listen, Yug," Joey started. "I think I really like Emilee, but I don't know if I should ask her out."

"Go for it," Yugi encouraged. "She hasn't been with anyone since Brandon, so go and try."

"Thanks, Yug!" Joey called over his shoulder as he ran back out front, grabbing my hand before running out the door. "Come on, Em!"

"I hope they'll be okay," Yugi thought, fiddling with his puzzle.

"What's the big hurry, Joey?" I asked as we got closer to Kaiba's mansion.

Joey didn't answer, just smiled to himself, tightened his grip on me and ran faster.

"Miss Hitachiin," Kaiba's butler said as he opened the front door for us. "Master Kaiba sends his apologies, but he will be gone today for business. However, he has prepared a room for you for tonight. If you go upstairs, it is the 3rd door on your left, right next to Master Kaiba's.

"Great!" I replied happily, walking toward the stairs, Joey following. "Did he leave some clothes?"

"In the closet, miss," the butler called up to me as I opened the door to my temporary room.

"Nice," I said as I walked into the room. It was pretty simple: two beds, a table, a couple chairs, and a dresser. "For an arrogant brat, Kaiba treats his guests well."

"Hey, Em?" Joey asked as I opened the closet.

"Yeah?" I asked back, changing into a pair of jeans that were hanging up.

"Do ya wanna go on a date with me tomorrow?" Joey asked, half-preparing for rejection. "Ya know, after your duel with Kaiba."

"Sure, sounds like fun," I replied, slipping my belts and deck back on.

"Yes!" Joey exclaimed, punching the air. "I got a date!"

"But right now, you wanna go on a walk?" I asked. "There's gotta be something more fun to do than trash this place."

"Sure," Joey said, walking toward the door while I opened the window. "

"Come on," I said, sticking one leg out the window.

"Where are you goin'?" Joey asked as I climbed completely out of the window.

"If I go out the front, someone'll ask me where I'm going," I replied, getting a good grip on the roof. "Besides, there's a tree. We can use that to get back up and down if needed. Come on, don't be a wimp."

"Who are you callin' a wimp?!" Joey demanded, climbing out after me.

Looking over the edge, I estimated that it was a 15-foot drop at least. "Let's go," I said, jumping off the edge. Landing on my feet, I knelt down to a crouch as I looked back up at Joey. "Come on, before anyone realizes we're gone."

Nodding slightly, Joey stepped off the edge and landed on his feet…but then he tripped.

"Way to go," I laughed as he got to his feet again and brushed the dirt and leaves off. "Let's go," I said, walking around Kaiba's house and down the street.

"Hey, wait up!" Joey called after me, running to catch up.

**I think this is at least the 4****th**** or so story I've made in this format and my first Yu-Gi-Oh story. I hope u like it!! **

**Remember, reviews are the fuel that feeds my brain so I'm inspired to write more!!**


	2. Duel? No prob

**I've got to stop writing this stuff. I'm pretty sure I have at least over 500 stories in-progress at the moment and none of them are even close to being finished. Oh, well…Review because it makes me happy and makes me feel wanted.**

About an hour into our walk, we were passing an alley when a man stepped out in front of us. "Hey, you're a pretty one," he said. "Ditch the blondie and me and my boys will show you a good time." He gestured at the 4 men still standing in the alley, then took a step toward me.

"If you don't want to get beat up by a girl, you better leave," I said sweetly, moving to walk past him.

"Ain't never gonna happen, sweetie," the man replied, grabbing my arm.

Sighing, I brought my arm down and back, then looked up at him and punched his jaw, pretty much knocking him out. "Anyone else wanna try?" I asked, crossing my arms. When no one answered, I smirked and turned around. "Thought not," I said, taking Joey's hand again. "Come on, let's go, Joey."

"She's my kind of girl," Joey thought as we walked back to Kaiba's mansion. "She can hit a guy twice her size and knock 'im out."

"What are you smiling at?" I asked, looking at Joey's face.

"Nothin'," Joey replied, walking with me to the tree in the back of the mansion.

"If you say so," I muttered, jumping up to grab a branch. Scampering up the tree, I waited by the window as Joey climbed up behind me.

"Miss Hitachiin," I heard Kaiba say from behind the door. "May I come in?"

"Hang on!" I called as Joey climbed in the window. "Okay, come in!"

Kaiba walked in, a couple of clothes in his hands. "I'm sorry I wasn't here today, but tomorrow we can duel," Kaiba apologized, handing me the clothes.

"Thanks," I said. "I'll see you tomorrow, then."

Nodding slightly, Kaiba walked out of my room, shutting the door behind him. unfolding the clothes I had, I saw that Kaiba had given me a pair of black silk pajamas and a pair of navy blue cotton ones. "I think these are for you," I said, tossing the cotton pajamas to Joey. Walking to the closet, I kept my black tanktop on and slipped on the pajamas, buttoning the shirt up half-way.

Walking out of the closet, I climbed into the bed closest to the door and quickly fell asleep. Looking over at me, Joey smiled and fell asleep as well.

The next morning, I rolled out of bed when light shone through my closed eyes. Running a hand through my hair, I left Joey to sleep and walked downstairs, ignoring the sleeve that had fallen off my shoulder. "Need…caffeine…" I mumbled, walking into the kitchen. Opening the fridge, I grabbed a bottle of the most-caffeinated soda I could find and started drinking, walking back up to my room.

"Joey, wake up," I yawned, looking for something to change into. As Joey slowly woke up, I changed into a pair of faded and ripped jeans, and a white T-shirt. Running a brush through my hair, I left it down as I slipped on a pair of socks, my belts, and deck. Grabbing my soda from my bed, I walked back downstairs to find Kaiba waiting for me.

"Come with me," Kaiba said, handing me a duel disk.

Slipping the duel disk on, I followed Kaiba to an outdoor duel arena just outside his house. "Let's get this over with," I said, shuffling my deck.

"Very well, then," Kaiba replied, pulling his deck out. "Duel!"

"I'll go first," I said, drawing a card. "First off, I summon my Dark Elf in attack mode. Then, I play 2 face-downs and end my turn."

"No matter what you do, you won't win," Kaiba told me as he drew a card. "I pay a monster face-down and place 1 card face-down."

"This'll be easy," I thought, taking my turn. "I summon a monster face-down. Then, I use the spell Dark Magic Curtain to summon Dark Magician and place 1 monster face-down. Beat that, Kaiba."

Smirking slightly, Kaiba drew his card and grinned. "I use the spell, Brain Control," he said, activating the card, "and take control of your Dark Elf. Then I sacrifice them both to summon Blue Eyes White Dragon!" As the dragon appeared, I took a slight step back. "I end my turn."

"Why did you end?" I asked, drawing. "You could've destroyed my Dark Magician."

"I decided to give you a fighting chance."

Scowling, I flip-summoned my Red Eyes Black Chick, then tributed it to summon Red Eyes Black Dragon. "I play the field spell Yami and equip my Dark Magician with Book of the Secret Arts. Now, destroy his Blue Eyes!"

"What?!" Kaiba exclaimed as his monster shattered.

"Should have destroyed him while you had the chance," I smirked, also attacking him with my Red Eyes. "I end my turn."

Kaiba half-glared at me, then ended his turn as quickly as it had started. "Done already," I said smugly. "So sad. I summon my Whiptail Crow, now, attack." One by one, my monsters attacked, slicing away at Kaiba's lifepoints until they reached 0. "Too cocky and arrogant," I said as my monsters disappeared.

"That was awesome!" Joey exclaimed, running up to me.

"Thanks, I—" I was cut off as Joey took my waist and pulled me into a kiss. He pulled away after a few seconds, looking like he was off in his own little world. Blushing a dark red, I pulled the duel disk off my arm and, setting it on the ground, ran back up to our room.

"Em?!" Joey exclaimed, running after me.

"I lost…" Kaiba thought, staring at his cards.

"Em?!" Joey called again as he ran into our room.

"I'll be back before dark," I whispered, jumping out of the tree. I ran down the street toward Yugi's house, not sure where else to go.

"Hey, Em," Yugi said as I walked in the door. "How'd your duel go?"

"I won," I replied, hopping up onto the counter.

"Then where's Joey?"

"Still at Kaiba's. I'm heading back there in a bit."

"You didn't tell him where you were going?"

"No. Yugi, after my duel, Joey ran up to me and kissed me. What am I supposed to do?"

"It's up to you. He likes you. Wait it out and see what happens. You might like the results."

Smiling, I hopped off the counter and hugged Yugi. "Thanks, Yugi," I said, walking out the door. "I'll be back later." Running back toward Kaiba's, I nearly ran into Joey. "Joey!" I exclaimed, looking up at him. "What are you doing?"

"Looking for you," Joey replied. "Let's go."

Smiling, I took off running, Joey right behind me. "What time is it?" I thought, looking at my watch as I raced up to our room. "6, not bad, but I'm still kinda tired." Quickly changing into my pajamas, I hopped into bed and fell asleep, Joey doing the same.

About halfway through the night, I sat up, trying not to think of the dream I'd just had. Walking toward Joey's bed, I gently shook him awake. "Joey?" I asked softly as he woke up.

"What's up, Em?" Joey asked, yawning.

"I kinda had a bad dream," I replied, looking down. "Can I…um…can I sleep with you?"

"Of course!" Joey answered immediately, then blushed slightly and looked away. "I mean, if you want to you can."

"Thanks," I said, climbing in next to him. Crawling under the blankets, I quickly fell asleep.


	3. The Deal and Contract

**Okay, this chapter is a little bit longer than the others but that's only because when I first created this story, the first 4 chapters I uploaded were all one story and I had to separate them…My methods are a little confusing…Please don't make me explain them…**

The next morning, I woke up and tried to get up, but failed. Looking over at Joey, I saw that he was still sound asleep, both his arms wrapped securely around my waist. Sighing, I tried to get loose, but every time I tried, he kept readjusting his grip. since I didn't really feel like waking him up, I laid back down and fell asleep again.

About an hour later, Joey woke up, yawning as he turned his head to look at the clock. "We should probably head back to Yugi's," he thought. Joey turned his head back toward me and breathed in sharply when he saw what position I was sleeping in. I was sound asleep, my right arm draped over his chest. "E-Em?" he stuttered, his face rapidly turning red.

Sleepily opening my eyes, I looked up at Joey and yawned. "Morning, Joey," I said, sitting up. "Ya wanna come get something to eat with me?"

"S-Sure," Joey replied nervously. Standing up, I pulled on a pair of jeans and a white T-shirt, Joey doing the same.

"Let's go see if this rich brat has anything good here," I said, rolling up the cuffs of the jeans.

"You could've put some thought into your appearance, mutt," Kaiba said as we walked into the kitchen.

"Leave him alone, Kaiba," I muttered. "You're just sore 'cause you lost to a girl."

"So now the little puppy is defending the mutt," Kaiba said, turning for the door. "Cute."

"Don't call me a puppy," I growled, glaring at him.

"So now we have the puppy and the mutt," Kaiba thought, walking upstairs. "Both dogs needing to be taught a lesson."

"Stupid rich boy," I muttered, taking a drink of water.

"That's the first time I've ever heard Kaiba call anyone but me a dog," Joey said.

"Yeah, well," I mumbled. "Hey, don't I owe you a date today?"

"If you still want to," Joey replied, swallowing the last of a piece of toast.

"Sure," I said, pulling on the boots I had left by the front door. "Let's go."

Grinning, Joey slipped into his shoes and followed me out the door. We walked around town for hours talking about duel monsters and home. "I can't believe ya beat Yugi!" Joey exclaimed, looking down at me.

"Well, I only beat him once," I said, grinning. "And I barely beat him, anyway."

"I gotta duel you sometime," Joey said, opening the door to Kaiba's mansion. There was no one around when we walked in and it kinda gave me a bad feeling. I reached down to my side but my deck was gone.

"I left my deck in our room," I thought. "And no one's around…Kaiba!" I bolted up the stairs and burst into our room, running over to where I had left my deck. Slipping my belts on, I checked my case. It was empty except for Winged Kuriboh. "Kaiba," I thought, grabbing the envelope that was beside my belts and case. Opening it, I found the spell Transcendent Wings and a note.

"Little puppy," I read aloud. "Both you and the mutt need to be taught a lesson but I've decided to start with you. As you can see, you only have 2 cards. The remainder of your deck I have with me. I will be in my office until 3:00 this afternoon. If you want your deck back, come find me, puppy."

"Hey, Em, you okay?" Joey asked, walking up behind me.

Ignoring him, I looked at the clock. "It's 10 'til," I thought, picking up the phone in the room.

"Hello?" Yugi's voice asked through the phone.

"Yugi, meet me at KaibaCorp as soon as you can," I said, then hung up before Yugi could ask why. Turning to the door, I walked out, heading out the front door.

"Hey, wait up!" Joey called, grabbing my arm as I walked outside. "Where are you goin'?"

"To kill Kaiba," I growled, picking up my Red Eyes Black Chick from the front lawn. "He stole my deck and now he's gonna pay."

After 5 minutes of walking, Joey and I came to KaibaCorp, Yugi, Teá, and Tristan waiting for us. "What's wrong, Emilee?" Yugi asked.

I ignored the question and pushed past him, walking inside. "Joey, what's with her?" Tristan asked.

"Kaiba stole her deck," Joey explained. "He said something about teaching his dogs a lesson."

"We'd better make sure she's okay, then," Yugi said, walking inside, Joey, Teá, and Tristan with him.

Walking out of the elevator and into Kaiba's office, I found my Dark Magician Girl and a note that said, "Press play." Walking over to the computer, I started the video already uploaded on it, scowling at the screen when I saw Kaiba.

"Well, puppy, as you can see, neither your deck nor I are here," the video Kaiba said. "You could try the simulation room." And with that, the video stopped, showing the KaibaCorp logo.

Cursing under my breath, I raced back to the elevator, nearly knocking down a KaibaCorp employee in the process. "Simulation room?" I asked as the elevator doors started to close.

"3 more floors up," he replied, then the doors shut.

"She's not here," Joey said, walking out of Kaiba's office. "She might be in the simulation room."

"Let's try there, then," Tristan agreed, walking to the elevator. "She couldn't have gotten far."

"I don't know," Yugi disagreed. "She's never stayed in one place for a long time. And considering Kaiba has her deck, she'll stay for an even shorter time than normal."

After finding my Negate Attack card and a taunting note addressed to 'Puppy,' I stormed out of KaibaCorp, heading toward Kaiba's house, not caring that Teá, Tristan, Yugi, or Joey weren't with me. "Stupid rich brat who steals my deck and taunts me with it," I muttered, opening the door to his home. "Stupid jerk who calls me a puppy. He is so dead."

Opening the door to Kaiba's room, I found Kaiba sitting on his bed flipping through my deck. "Your deck makes no sense on its own," he commented. "You have cards of every spell type, trap type, and monster attribute yet you seem to be the only one who can use it correctly."

"Because it's my deck," I said, taking a step closer. "I know every card in it and what they do. Making up different strategies for what cards I draw is something I do frequently."

"What I would like to know is how you came to have this in your deck," Kaiba said, holding up my Blue Eyes White Dragon.

"None of your business," I snapped, reaching for it. "Now give me back my deck."

"There's only one way to get your deck back," Kaiba said, standing up. "You come work for me. For every day you work, you get one card back. That also means you are to follow my every order."

"Don't do it, Em!"

I turned toward the door and saw Joey run in, Yugi right behind him; Teá and Tristan had things to do. "I have to," I said. "Otherwise I'll never get my deck back."

"Listen to the puppy, mutt," Kaiba said, extending his hand toward me. "Now, do we have a deal?"

Hesitating ever so slightly, I reached out and shook Kaiba's hand, head bowed. Suddenly, Kaiba handed me a piece of paper and a pen. "What's this?" I asked.

"Just to make sure you don't back out of our deal," Kaiba replied. "It states the conditions of the deal and says that if you break it, I'm allowed to keep your deck for as long as I want. However, if you ask me first, you may take a day off and not earn a card for that day."

"As long as I get my deck back, it's a deal," I thought, quickly signing my name at the bottom under Kaiba's signature. "That it?" I asked, turning to Joey and Yugi who were just staring at me.

"Yes," Kaiba replied, placing the contract in his briefcase. "I'll see you tomorrow, puppy."

"Em, how could you agree to that?" Yugi asked as we headed toward his house.

"Simple," I replied, looking at the only 5 cards in my deck. "He'll probably just make me his secretary until I get my deck back. Besides, he did say that if I ask, I can get days off."

"Yeah, but if ya miss a day, Kaiba could keep your deck," Joey pointed out.

"So I'll just not miss a day," I said, shrugging. "It's just after school and on the weekends. A month or so and I'll have my entire deck back."

"But how long can you go without dueling?" Joey asked.

"As long as it takes," I replied, opening the door to Yugi's grandpa's game shop. "But if Kaiba thinks he's teaching me a lesson by taking my deck, he's got another thing coming."

"Joey, do you want to stay here tonight?" Yugi asked. "We could invite Teá and Tristan over, too."

"If ya want," Joey replied, walking with us up to Yugi's room. "What could go wrong?"

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After a little bit of arguing with Tristan and Teá, we all changed into pajamas and sat down for a game of Truth and Dare, something I hadn't played in a long time.

"Alright, Joey," Teá said. "Truth or Dare?"

"Truth," Joey replied, leaning back on his elbows.

"Who do you like?" Teá questioned.

"Um…" Joey's face started to darken as he glanced at me.

Noticing his glance, I smiled. "Me," I answered for him. "Joey likes me." Ignoring the questions Yugi, Teá, and Tristan were asking, I stood up and stretched my arms over my head. "I'm going to bed," I said, turning for the door. "Yugi, wake me up for school tomorrow please." Yugi nodded as I walked downstairs, heading for my makeshift bed. Since Yugi didn't really have a guest room, I had set up a mattress, pillows, and blankets in a corner behind the counter in the game shop.

"Tomorrow is the start of the worst 2 months of my life," I thought, slipping under my blankets and falling asleep.

**Remember to R&R!!!!**


	4. A New Master

**Okay, this chapter is REALLY, ****REALLY****, ****REALLY**** short!! I'm sorry!! Don't hurt me!! *cowers in a corner***

"Em? Emilee, wake up."

I sleepily opened my eyes and saw Yugi leaning over me. "I'm up, I'm up," I muttered, standing up. "I'll be up in a second. Just let me change." As soon as Yugi was out of my sight, I quickly slipped into my uniform, heading upstairs as I ran my fingers through my hair.

"You guys ready?" I asked as I walked into Yugi's room.

"Yeah, let's go," Yugi replied as he and the rest of the guys followed me downstairs and outside.

About 5 minutes away from school, a sleek black limo pulled up beside us. As the window rolled down, a card flew at me. "Mystical Elf," I thought, slipping it into my deck.

"Puppy, come with me," Kaiba said, opening the door.

"Can't," I replied as I continued walking. "I have school."

"Not while you work for me," Kaiba said, pulling me into the limo. "Yugi, you and the mutt may have her back later."

"Kaiba!" Joey exclaimed. "Wait a minute!" But it was too late, the limo sped off toward Kaiba's house.

"Don't worry, Joey," Yugi said as they started walking again. "You'll see her again later. Kaiba can't keep her forever."

"So, what am I gonna have to do?" I asked, leaning back against the seat and propping my legs up next to Kaiba on the seat across from me.

"Feet off the furniture, puppy," Kaiba ordered, pushing my feet off the seat. "That's the first rule. Second, while working for me, you will be staying at my house."

"That wasn't part of the deal," I said, glaring at him.

"But it was in the contract that you signed," Kaiba said. "When Yugi comes to pick you up later today, you can tell him. According to our contract, until you earn your deck back, you belong to me."

**The next chapter will be longer, I promise!!!**


	5. Collars and Rules

**Edwardsgirl16: Well, here we are with the first day of Emilee's torture!**

**Yami Edwardsgirl16: You know, if you'd listen to me, it wouldn't be torture.**

**Edgrl16: Yeah, but sometimes, your ideas are really weird.**

**Kaiba: I like them**

**Yami: See, so you should listen to me.**

**Edgrl16: *sigh* Fine, MAYBE I'll listen to you for the next chapter**

**Yami: Yes! *gives Kaiba a high-five* **

As the limo stopped in front of Kaiba's house, Kaiba opened the door and pulled me out, walking inside and toward his bedroom. "This is where you'll be sleeping," Kaiba said.

"How nice, you're giving me your bed, right?" I asked sarcastically.

"Dogs should always sleep at their master's feet," Kaiba replied, gesturing to a mattress, blankets, and pillows like the ones I had at Yugi's (only a lot more expensive) on the ground at the foot of Kaiba's bed.

"Yeah, this isn't degrading at all," I thought, crossing my arms.

"Puppy, put this on," Kaiba ordered, handing me a small bag. "The bathroom is right there."

Shedding my jacket on my "bed," I walked into the bathroom and got out of my shirt and pants. "You have got to be kidding me," I muttered, reluctantly pulling on the clothes Kaiba gave me.

"Puppy, get out here now," Kaiba ordered after a few minutes.

Walking as slowly as I could, I stood in front of Kaiba, hands clenched at my sides. I had on a brown miniskirt, tanktop, and sneakers. The worst part of the whole outfit was the pair of brown dog ears set on my head and the brown dog tail on the back of the miniskirt. "Stupid brat," I thought.

"I will be expecting you to be wearing this everyday," I said.

"But what if I go outside?" I asked. "I look so innocent and like I couldn't hurt anyone.

Spinning me around, Kaiba buckled something around my neck then turned me back to face him. "As long as you're wearing this, no one should do anything," he told me. Going over to a mirror, I saw that he had put a red leather collar with a KaibaCorp tag on it around my neck. "Do you have a watch?"

"Left it at home," I replied.

Taking my arm, Kaiba secured a brown watch around my wrist. "Be back here in 3 hours," Kaiba ordered, handing me my belts and deck case.

"What a surprise," I thought, walking out of his room. "My belts are now brown. School gets out in 3 hours so I might as well go there." Since I couldn't find a jacket, I just headed out the front door, cursing Kaiba over and over.

Luckily, when I got to the high school, a class was just about to start, so I grabbed Yugi and ran to a secluded classroom. "Em?" he asked in disbelief. "Is that you?"

"Yugi, I can't leave with you tonight," I said. "Apparently, the contract I signed said that while I work for Kaiba, I have to stay with him."

"Hey, Yug," Joey said, walking in on us. "You comin' to class or wh—Emilee?"

"Hi, Joey," I said as he looked me up and down.

"Did Kaiba make you wear that?" Joey asked.

"Yeah, and I only have…" I glanced at my watch. "…about 2 and a half hours 'till I have to go back to his house."

"Then at least come to class," Yugi said as he and Joey pulled me into the hallway.

"Yugi! Joey!" I exclaimed, "If someone sees—!"

"A little early for Halloween, isn't it, Hitachiin?"

I turned and saws Jack Twist, the guy who had hated/liked me ever since 4th grade. "What do you want, Jack?" I asked, crossing my arms. "I'm going back to where I'm staying."

"First, you've got to tell me who got you to wear that," Jack said, grinning. "I'd like to congratulate them."

Scowling at him, I turned for the door and ran into Kaiba. "Puppy, it's time to go," he said.

"Seto Kaiba?" Jack asked in disbelief. "He's the one who made you wear that?"

Ignoring him, I looked up at Kaiba. "I still have about 2 and a half hours left," I said.

"Not anymore. I have something for you to do." Kaiba grabbed my wrist and to his limo, neither of us noticing the figure following us.

"What do you need me to do?" I asked as we headed toward his house, annoyed that I didn't get my full 3 hours.

"Just some chores," Kaiba replied, pushing my feet off the seat again. "What did I say about feet on the furniture?"

"Don't know," I said, moving my hands behind my head. "I wasn't really paying attention to that rule."

"Just make sure my room is at least clean," Kaiba ordered as the limo stopped and I got out. "If you do a good job, I might have a reward for you."

"Whatever," I muttered, walking into the house and up to Kaiba's room.

"So, what do you owe Kaiba?"

I looked at the window and saw Jack sitting half-in, half-out. "And what makes you think I owe him anything?" I asked as I started to make Kaiba's bed.

"Because you'd never do this on your own," Jack replied. "Now, come on, what is it?"

"He has my deck," I admitted, finishing on the bed but didn't see anything else to clean. "This is how I'm getting it back. Now, why are you here again?"

"I just wanted to know why you're doing this," Jack replied, shrugging. "And now I know, I'll just go."

"Jack, you tell anyone and you're dead," I told him as he started climbing back out the window.

"Don't worry, I won't tell anyone."

"Thanks. Maybe you're not the jerk I pegged you to be."

"Nah, I'm still a jerk. Just a jerk who'll do this for you."

Smiling, I laid back on Kaiba's bed and eventually fell asleep.

"Puppy?" Kaiba called as he walked into the mansion. "Where is she? She won't answer her phone, either." Walking into his room, he set his briefcase next to the door, then saw me fast asleep curled up in a ball on his bed. "I suppose I could allow her to sleep on the bed for tonight," Kaiba thought, quickly changing into his pajamas. "But just for tonight." Since I was curled up on the right side of the bed, Kaiba laid back on the left side, set his alarm, and fell asleep.

"Come on, Yug!" Joey insisted as they walked home from school. "We can't just leave her there!"

"She said she has to," Yugi said again. "She's probably asleep by now. You can call her tomorrow or just walk over there. Kaiba did say she could get days off if she asked."

"Fine," Joey muttered, shoving his hands in his pockets. "But as soon as Emilee gets her deck back, Kaiba's dead."

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	6. First Day of Work

**Yami: Ya gonna listen to my ideas now?**

**Edgrl16: Nope**

**Kaiba: Why not?**

**Edgrl16: Well, for one, they usually involve Kaiba treating Emilee even more like a dog than he already is.**

**Kaiba and Yami: *together* And that's a problem because…?**

**Edgrl16: Just shut up both of you…**

My eyes opened when I heard Kaiba's alarm clock go off. Sitting up, I finally noticed that I was on Kaiba's bed, a note where Kaiba had slept. "Puppy," I read aloud. "I had to go to work. In the closet on the bottom rack are your uniforms. I'll be expecting you to change and come down to my office as soon as possible. Seto Kaiba."

Looking in the closet, I grabbed the jeans and T-shirt that were hanging together in the middle of many variations of my uniform. Keeping the ears on, I changed my clothes and pulled on my shoes as I hopped to the front door. Opening it, the first thing I noticed was that it was pouring down rain. "Great," I muttered. "If I run, it'll take me about 2 or 3 minutes…" Taking a deep breath, I took off for KaibaCorp getting soaked after the first 30 seconds.

"Puppy, why are you wet?" Kaiba asked as I walked into his office, dripping water with every step.

"In case you haven't noticed, genius," I said, taking the ears off my head, "it's raining and I didn't have a ride." Setting my ears on his desk, I took a step back and shook my head to get rid of the water.

"No shaking inside, puppy," Kaiba ordered as I put my ears back on my head.

"Well, it's raining outside so I have no other choice," I replied, wringing out the bottom of my shirt. "Now, what do you need me to do and where's my card for today?"

"Here's the list of things I need you to do," Kaiba said, handing me a piece of paper and my Tyrant Dragon. "You may use my coat for today. When you're finished, come back here."

Taking his black coat from the back of his chair, I pulled it on and walked out of Kaiba Corp. It took me 3 hours to finish all the things Kaiba needed done, and when I was done, I headed back to KaibaCorp, a metal briefcase in one hand.

"Here," I said, tossing my briefcase at Kaiba as I walked into his office. Without even looking up from his computer, Kaiba caught the briefcase and set it down at his feet.

"Puppy," Kaiba started, continuing what he was doing on his computer as I sat on the floor, having nothing else to do, "I've been wanting to know. How many people have you beaten in duels?"

"I don't know," I replied, leaning back and closing my eyes, my hands behind my head. "Pretty much anyone that wanted to duel me. The only real challenges were you, for the most part…I beat Pegasus once, and Yugi, too, but they were both really close duels."

"So you beat Yugi?" Kaiba asked.

"Yeah, so?"

"That would mean you're the King of Games, wouldn't it?"

"I guess, but I don't really care. Besides, when you're the King of Games, everyone asks for a duel. There was this one guy that asked that I almost didn't beat. Then again, he asked to play two games…"

"And who would that be?"

"Duke, I think his name was. Duke Devlin, maybe. Anyway, I beat him easy at Duel Monsters, but I almost didn't win his game. Dungeon Dice or something like that. I can't even remember."

"So, why are you staying with Yugi?"

"What is this, 20 questions?!"

"Puppy, answer."

"Fine. My parents are off in who knows where for business and they didn't want me to say alone. He's the closest relative and we know each other really well. Besides, he's my favorite cousin."

"And who long do you plan on staying here in Domino?"

"Until my parents get back, but I have no idea when that is. Now, can we stop with the questions?" Kaiba stopped asking, but after a few minutes, I felt someone tap on my foot. Opening my eyes, I saw Kaiba standing over me, ready to leave.

Following him to the limo, we drove back to his mansion. In my pocket, my phone was set on silent, so I had no idea that Joey was trying to call me as I walked inside behind Kaiba.

"Yugi, she's not answering," Joey said, setting the phone down.

"Well, she might have her phone on silent," Yugi said. "She keeps it like that during the night sometimes and she usually forgets to turn it back on. Don't worry about it."

"I'm just gonna check on her," Joey said, heading for the door. "I'll be back later, Yug."

"Be careful, Joey," Yugi called after him as Joey closed the door.

"Big brother!"

I looked up toward the sound of the voice and saw Mokuba running toward Kaiba.

"Home from school, Mokuba?" Kaiba asked, taking his coat from me and hanging it up.

"I finished everything so they let me come home early," Mokuba explained, stopping in front of me and Kaiba. "Who's she?"

"I'm—" I was cut off as Kaiba placed a hand over my mouth. Reaching around to my deck case, he pulled out the cards there and handed them to Mokuba.

"Let's see if you can tell," Kaiba said.

"Emilee Hitachiin?" Mokuba asked, handing me back my cards. "The King of Games?"

"Yeah," I replied, shoving Kaiba's hand away.

"Puppy, I have work to do here, so watch Mokuba and keep him entertained," Kaiba ordered, taking his briefcase. He walked upstairs without saying anything else, leaving me with Mokuba.

"So, what do you want to do?" I asked, looking down at Mokuba.

"I wanna duel you," Mokuba replied, grinning.

"But…I don't have a deck," I said, then there was knock at the door. Opening it, I saw Joey standing there, hair dripping with water. "Joey? What are you doing here?"

"You wouldn't answer my calls," Joey replied. "I wanted to know if you wanted to go out with me tomorrow."

"Sure," I replied, ignoring Mokuba as he pulled on my arm to get me to duel him. "I'll ask Kaiba later."

Smiling, Joey surprised me with a kiss, then ran off.

Blushing a dark red, I closed the door and turned back to Mokuba. "Tell ya what," I said. "I'll ask your brother for my deck to duel you."

Grinning, Mokuba let go of my arm and ran off to a duel arena somewhere in the mansion.

Walking up to Kaiba's room, I saw him diligently tapping away at a computer. "Yes?" he asked as I walked in. "What is it?"

"Kaiba, can I have tomorrow off?" I asked.

"Why?" Kaiba asked, looking up at me.

"To go on a date with Joey," I replied.

"Wheeler, huh? I'll allow it, but you don't get a card," Kaiba agreed. "And the next day you have to follow my every order with no hesitation."

"Thank you!" I exclaimed, running off to find Mokuba.

After explaining to Mokuba that I couldn't get my deck back, I sent him off to bed, then headed back up to Kaiba's room to go to sleep myself. Changing into the T-shirt and shorts Kaiba gave me, I set my ears, belts, and deck on the floor in the closet under my uniforms.

"Good night, puppy," Kaiba said as I crawled under the blankets on my "bed", quickly falling asleep.

**Reviews are your friends! Honor your friends please!!!!!**


	7. Date with Joey

**Edgrl16: Yay! I finished another chapter!!!**

**Yami: *hand fisted around my shirt* Use my ideas!!!!!!!**

**Edgrl16: *gulp* I'll use it in the next part, okay??**

**Yami: *grin* That's more like it**

**Kaiba: Is that how you always get her to give in?**

**Yami: Of course**

**Joey: Well, at least it works**

**Edgrl16: Great, now they're all against me…Have fun with this chapter!**

Opening my eyes, I was practically blinded by a light in my eyes. Turning away, I stood up and walked over to the closet. Beside my uniforms were a couple regular clothes. Quickly changing into a black T-shirt and a pair of jean shorts, I turned for the door and almost ran into Kaiba.

"Forgetting something?" Kaiba asked.

"You've got to be kidding me," I thought, reaching down and grabbing my ears, belts, and deck. Slipping them all on, I looked back up at Kaiba and saw him holding out the rest of my deck.

"You may have this only for today," Kaiba said as I placed it in my case. "I'll be expecting it back at the end of the day."

"See ya later!" I called over my shoulder as I ran out of his room and downstairs. Opening the front door, I nearly ran into Joey as I ran out.

"What the rush, Em?" Joey asked as I tucked a strand of hair behind my ear.

"Nothing," I replied, smiling. "Let's go."

Grinning, Joey wrapped an arm around my shoulder and walked down the street with me. "So where do ya wanna go today?" he asked.

"Somewhere that doesn't remind me of Kaiba," I replied.

"I think that rules out about half of Domino City," Joey said, still grinning.

"I got an idea," I said. "Kaiba gave me back my deck for today so, ya wanna duel?"

"Sure!" Joey exclaimed, his grin growing. "But we'll need duel disks if we want to avoid using Kaiba's duel arenas."

"Leave that to me," I smirked. "You know the place where they gave out duel disks for the Battle City Tournament? Well, they had extras and now only the best duelists can get them." Taking Joey's hand, I headed for the small shop, hoping that my plan would work.

"May I help you?" the shopkeeper asked as we walked in.

"Yeah, I'd like 2 duel disks," I said, letting go of Joey's hand to lean up against the counter. "The name's Emilee Hitachiin."

The shopkeeper typed in my name then looked up at the computer screen. His eyes widened as he saw my duel rating and he looked back and forth between me and the computer. "This girl can't possibly be a 5 star duelist," he thought, turning his gaze to my rare card. "And she as a Blue-Eyes White Dragon as well! Seto Kaiba should know about this." He handed me the duel disks, then dialed Kaiba's number when Joey and I left.

"See how easy that was?" I asked, handing Joey a duel disk.

"Yeah, but that guy was looking at you kinda funny," Joey replied, slipping it on.

"I can explain that," I said, shuffling my deck. "When he turned around, I checked what he was looking at. According to his computer, I'm a 5 star duelist and my rarest card is a Blue-Eyes White Dragon. He was probably just like everyone else and couldn't believe it."

When we finally stopped, we were in the middle of a park. "You ready?" I asked, starting up my duel disk.

"Ready to win," Joey smirked.

"Really? Well then, let's make this interesting. The winner has to do whatever the loser says for a day, but the loser has to wear a dress for a day."

"You're on!"

"Let's go, then. I'll go first. I play my Dunames Dark Witch in attack position and place a card face down."

About 10 minutes into our duel, a crowd had gathered around me and Joey. "Now, Dark Magician, attack him directly!" I exclaimed, grinning as Joey's lifepoints dropped to 500. At the beginning of the duel, I'd let him try to win but all that gave me was a grand total of 250 lifepoints left. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Kaiba's limo, but I didn't pay much attention to it.

"You're gonna pay for that," Joey said, drawing a card.

"Oh, yeah? Bring it on," I taunted, grinning.

"Puppy."

At the sound of Kaiba's voice and the name he called, I looked over my shoulder and saw Kaiba standing behind me, his arms crossed. "If I'd known you'd be dueling Wheeler, I would never have given you your deck," he said. "And if you let that mutt beat you, you'll never get your deck back."

"Well, that's making me want to win," I thought as Joey summoned his Red-Eyes Black Dragon by sacrificing 2 of his face down monsters.

"I need one card to win," I thought, looking at my deck. Drawing, I grinned and looked back up at Joey. "You're in trouble now," I smirked. "I play the spell Brain Control to take control of your Red-Eyes. Then I sacrifice your monster and my Dark Magician to summon Blue-Eyes White Dragon!" As my monster appeared, I could see and hear the crowds surprise; I didn't use my Blue-Eyes much in duels. "Now, attack."

As soon as my dragon attacked, Joey's lifepoints dropped to 0 and I won. "You know our deal, Joey," I said. "I have to do whatever you say for a day but you have to wear a dress for a day." I grinned as Joey looked like he was gonna be sick as he looked at me. "Don't look at me with that face, Joey. You lost fair and square and you agreed to our bet. Deal with it." Turning around, I saw Kaiba looking at me with his arms still crossed, a slight grin on his face.

"Puppy," Kaiba said, holding out a hand.

"But I still have the rest of the day to keep it," I pouted, sticking out my lower lip.

"That won't work," Kaiba told me. He kept his hand held out toward me while I continued to pout.

"Please?" I asked, giving him my best puppy-dog look.

"That still won't work," Kaiba replied. "No matter how cute it is," he thought as I reluctantly handed him my deck, minus the cards I'd already earned. "Let's go," he said, taking my arm as he headed back toward his limo.

"Hang on!" I exclaimed, pulling out of his grip. Running over to Joey, I helped him up. "Thanks for the duel," I said, hugging him. "I'll be looking forward to when you wear a dress."

"You're gonna pay for making me wear it when you have to obey everything I tell you to do," Joey smirked. Before I could move to walk back to Kaiba, Joey leaned down and kissed me, pulling away after a second or two. "I'll see ya later."

Blushing a dark red, I ran back to Kaiba, a smile on my face. "Never let me see you do that again," Kaiba told me, a slight glare on his face.

"Whatever you say," I replied, grinning, practically hopping into his limo.

"At least she'll be staying with me tomorrow," Kaiba thought, barely shaking his head. Moving in beside me, he closed the door and snapped at the driver to head back to his house. As the limo started moving, I slid over to the window and rolled it down, looking back at Joey.

"See ya later!" I called, waving.

"Next time, I won't lose!" Joey called back, grinning.

"Puppy," Kaiba said, redirecting my attention back to him.

"Hm?" I turned back to him, sliding over so that I was sitting directly across from him.

"You do remember our deal, right?" Kaiba asked, for once not pushing my feet off the seat. "Since I let you go on a date with Wheeler, you have to obey every order I give you tomorrow without any hesitation."

"Sure thing," I replied, shrugging. "What exactly will I have to do?"

"I'll need you to come with me to KaibaCorp tomorrow morning," Kaiba said. "You'll be running around for me."

"Sounds fun," I thought, leaning forward with my chin in my hand. "Do I have anything else to do today?" I asked.

"No," Kaiba replied. "When we get to my house, you are to go straight up to my room and stay there until I come and get you."

"Yay," I thought sarcastically, getting out as the limo stopped. As Kaiba walked away, I headed upstairs and into his room, getting completely bored out of my mind after just 5 minutes.

When Kaiba didn't come up after a couple hours, I walked into his bathroom and stripped to take a shower. "After spending 2 days with Kaiba, this feels so good," I thought as I stood under the hot water. When I was done, I grabbed a towel and stepped out of the shower, shaking my hair dry like normal. Looking at the counter in front of me, I saw a small pile of clothes waiting for me.

"I guess I'm supposed to wear this," I thought, slipping on the white undershirt and light blue boxers. As I pulled on the long-sleeved white collared shirt that was left on the counter, I walked back into the bedroom, buttoning the shirt up half-way. Since the shirt was at least 3 sizes too big for me, the sleeves had to be rolled up a couple times. "It's probably Kaiba's," I thought, running my hands through my hair.

"Puppy, dinner," Kaiba said from behind me.

I spun around and saw him holding a small tray with a glass of water and a sandwich. "Thanks," I said, taking it as I sat on his bed. "By the way, why do I have to wear this?"

"It's the only clothes I have that aren't your uniform," Kaiba replied. "I'm having your clothes sent here tomorrow so the only things I have for you are my clothes. Here, put this on." He tossed me a pair of black slacks, waiting as I changed into them, kneeling down to roll up the cuffs.

"I get that," I said, sitting up straight to finish eating, "but why did you give me such nice clothes?"

"Did I not tell you?" Kaiba asked, taking the tray and setting it on a dresser. "I was invited to a dinner by one of the people who work with KaibaCorp. Many other people were invited as well and we are each allowed to bring someone to serve us instead of using the host's servants. Since you belong to me until you earn your deck back, I'll be bringing you to serve me."

"Yay," I thought, pulling on the black sneakers Kaiba tossed at me. "Am I required to do anything else for anyone beside you?" I asked, pulling my hair back in a ponytail.

"You are to answer any question given you by any guest," Kaiba ordered, taking my arm as he led me out of the room. "Your collar should prevent anyone from asking you anything too personal." As we got into his limo and started driving, I wrapped my fingers around the tag connected to my collar, fingering the KaibaCorp sign. My eyes started to close as we continued driving and I leaned back against my seat, falling asleep.


	8. Secrets Revealed

**Yami: Since Edgrl16 is currently unavailable, I'll be introducing this chapter**

**Kaiba: What do you mean unavailable?! She controls what happens!**

**Yami: Let's just say she's in a better place now…*evil grin***

**Joey: You killed her?!**

**Yami: No! *hits Joey over the head* She's at the library!! Calm down! Okay, while those two are hyperventilating, please enjoy your daily does of fanfiction.**

"Wake up, pup, we're here."

I opened my eyes and saw Kaiba opening his door, gesturing for me to follow him. Rubbing the sleep from my eyes, I followed him into a mansion a little bit smaller than his own, yawning slightly.

"Ah, Mr. Kaiba, so glad you could come," a man said as we walked in the front door. I looked around quickly and saw a lot of people dressed in expensive-looking clothes, wine glasses in more than half of their hands. "And who have you brought with you tonight?"

"Mr. Fraie, this is who I've brought to serve me tonight," Kaiba replied.

"Please to meet you, Miss…I'm sorry, I didn't catch your name," Mr. Fraie said.

"Hit—" I started before Kaiba slapped a hand over my mouth.

"Jaden," Kaiba answered for me. "Her name is Jaden."

"Well, I'll see you around, Miss Jaden," Mr. Fraie said, turning back to the rest of his guests.

"Why did you do that?" I asked, shoving Kaiba's hand away. "Why couldn't I tell him my real name?"

"First of all, how many people saw you beat Pegasus and Yugi?" Kaiba asked, pulling me toward a wall.

"I-I don't know," I replied nervously. "Maybe…most of Domino City? I'm not sure. I was trying to concentrate on winning someone's soul back."

"Explain," Kaiba ordered.

"Not now," I replied. "I'll explain later. It's hard enough that I'm gonna have to tell you, but it's gonna be even harder doing it in front of a bunch of people."

Kaiba sighed and massaged his temples. "Go get me a drink," he said, moving so I could walk around him.

Sticking my hands in my pockets, I walked over to a server and grabbed one of the glasses of wine he held on a tray. As I was walking back to Kaiba, a man walked in front of me, a half-empty wine glass in his hand. "And just who might you be," he slurred, blocking my way.

"E—Jaden," I corrected at the last minute. "My name is Jaden. Now if you'll excuse me, I need to give this drink to someone."

"Who do you work for?" he slurred again, catching my arm as I tried to walk around him.

"Seto Kaiba," I replied, jerking my arm away. "Now leave me alone please." I started walking again when I felt him grab my shoulder. "He just doesn't know when to quit," I thought, shaking my head. Turning around, I smiled sweetly at him as my arm moved back to punch him.

Before I could make contact, though, someone behind me grabbed my fist, jerking me away from the drunk. Spinning around, I saw Kaiba holding onto my arm, glaring directly at the man who had grabbed me. "I suggest you leave her alone before I allow her to finish what she started," he growled, glaring harder, if that was possible.

Muttering something about me not being worth it, the man stumbled away from us, grabbing another drink in the process. "Why didn't you let me hit him?" I pouted, following Kaiba as he led me to an empty hallway.

"Because while you belong to me, you are not allowed to hit anyone unless I tell you to," Kaiba ordered, taking the wine glass from my hand. "Thank you."

"When I was looking around and getting you your drink," I started, balancing on my heels, "I noticed that I'm the only girl here who's serving anyone. Care to explain that little fact?"

"Yes, when you own a large company like everyone here tonight does, you use a boy to serve you when you take a servant with you," Kaiba replied. "I chose to bring you because I still need to teach a dog some obedience."

"I. Am. Not. A. Dog," I hissed through clenched teeth.

"We'll see," Kaiba thought, pushing me back in the direction of the rest of the guests.

Since I had no direct orders to follow Kaiba around, I tried to stay as far away as possible, only coming near him when he called. "I'm amazed," I thought as I walked out onto the balcony, hopping up on the rail and swinging my legs over. "Kaiba's had, like, 5 glasses of wine and he's still not drunk. If that had been dad, he'd be passed out on the bed right now. That is, after he's done a couple other things…" I winced slightly at the memory and stared at my shoes to clear my head.

As I thought about going back inside, my pocket vibrated, reminding me that I'd brought my phone with me. Looking at the caller id, I groaned but answered it anyway. "Hello?" I asked.

"Honey?" my mother's voice asked over the phone. "Hon, are you there?"

"Yeah," I replied, bringing a knee up to my chest. "What's up?"

"We just wanted to check up you, sweetie," my mom told me. "Your father and I are going to stay a little longer than we expected, so we wanted to make sure you were fine staying with Yugi."

"Mom, I'll be fine," I assured her, hearing Kaiba call my name faintly. "Listen, I gotta go, someone's calling me."

"Emilee."

I froze when I heard my father's voice over the phone, sitting up straight out of habit from hearing his voice.

"Y-Yes, sir?" I asked nervously.

"Who's calling you?" my father asked me, his voice demanding.

"A friend. I gotta go!"

"Emilee, don't hang up this phone!"

At the sound of the order, I gulped and put the phone back up to me ear. "Yes, sir?"

"Who's calling you?"

"I-It's just Joey! Jeoy Wheeler; he's Yugi's best friend."

"Alright, then."

"Bye, dad." Snapping the phone shut, I breathed a sigh of relief as I stuffed it back in my pocket. "That was close," I breathed. "Next time, I'll ask not to talk with dad." Hearing Kaiba call my name again, I hurried inside and stopped in front of him.

"You called?" I asked, looking down at the floor.

"It's time to leave," Kaiba said, taking my wrist as he walked toward the front door.

"But the dinner hasn't even started," I insisted as I slid into Kaiba's limo.

"Yes, but if one more drunk man asks me about you, I would have let you hit him," Kaiba replied, closing the door. "I called you four times, where were you?"

"I was outside," I answered. "My parents called to check up on me."

"Have you told them about our deal?"

"No, I don't need a reason for them to kill me. Beside, hopefully by the time they get home, I'll have my deck back." Closing my eyes again, I leaned back against the seat and fell asleep again.

When I woke up again about an hour later, I realized that I was lying on my stomach on Kaiba's bed, the back of my undershirt split apart to reveal my back. Grabbing the black T-shirt next to me, I quickly pulled it on and turned around to see Kaiba looking at me.

"How did you get those scars?" he asked calmly.

"Wh-What scars?" I asked back nervously.

Kaiba stood up from his chair and set me back on my stomach on his bed. "These," he replied, pulling up the back of my shirt. As one hand held the back of my shirt up, the other hand traced over the thin, vine-like scars snaking from my shoulders down to my waist and all over my back.

"My dad," I replied as Kaiba continued to examine my back. "When…when he was drunk."

"Was he an alcoholic?"

"Not exactly. He didn't drink much, but when he did, he got really, really, really drunk. Whenever he did, my mom would always leave for the night and she'd never tell me where she went. I had no place to go, so I had to stay at home, hiding from my dad until he passed out on the bed or couch. Sometimes he found me, though; it's kinda hard to hide when you're 14 and can't fit everywhere you used to. Usually, he just held me down and took a knife to my back until I got away or he passed out. He doesn't remember anything after he wakes up and I've never told him. When he was done with me, I locked myself in my room and climbed out the window. One of my friends knew all about my dad so I always went there after I got away. He patched up my back and until the bleeding stopped, I always kept it covered up."

"Does your mother know?"

"No, and I'm not gonna tell either of them."

Kaiba pulled my shirt down and stood up straight, making a mental note to have a doctor look at my back as soon as possible. Rolling off Kaiba's bed, I got into my own bed and fell asleep, not wanting to answer any more questions.

After he set his alarm, Kaiba turned out the lights and got into bed, eventually falling asleep himself.


	9. An Old Friend

**Edgrl16: Thx for doing the last chapter for me Yami! **

**Yami: As long as you were happy, my little hikari.**

**Edgrl16: *grin* I was! I found a whole bunch of new books to read!!!**

**Kaiba: Just make sure that you keep writing.**

**Edgrl16: Of course! Enjoy!**

A loud beeping in the morning woke me up. Lifting my head from the pillow, I stared up at the evil machine that dared wake me up at 6 o'clock in the morning. Namely, Kaiba's alarm clock. "Stupid clock," I muttered, stumbling over to the closet. I quickly pulled on a pair of uniform jeans and a tanktop and slipped my belts and ears on. Slipping my sneakers on, I headed downstairs and grabbed a piece of toast I found in the kitchen. "I'm just gonna get this over with," I thought, walking out the front door.

"Hey, Em!"

I looked over my shoulder and saw Joey running toward me, Yugi at his side. "Hey, Joey, Yugi," I said, walking backwards so I could face them. "What's up?"

"Where ya headed?" Joey asked as he and Yugi slowed to a walk.

"KaibaCorp," I replied. "I gotta work there all day today. What are you guys doing?"

"We're meeting Tristan and Teá at the arcade," Yugi told me. "We were wondering if you wanted to come with us."

"I would, but Kaiba would kill me," I said. "And I can't risk losing my deck now. Oh, and Yugi, my parents called last night and said that they'd be gone longer than they expected, so they wanted to know if you were fine with me staying a little longer."

"You know grandpa and I don't mind," Yugi told me. "But what about Kaiba?"

"I haven't told them yet," I said, looking over my shoulder at the upcoming building. "Last night, I had to go with Kaiba to a dinner thing and that's when they called. Kaiba called for me and I had to tell them that Joey called me. Then my father got on the phone and I lied to him."

"So what's the problem, then?" Joey asked as we stopped in front of KaibaCorp.

"The problem is I've never lied to him before!" I exclaimed. "Lied to my mom, yes. Lied to my dad, no. The last time I lied to my dad, he…well, let's just say he did something that he doesn't do a lot."

"What did he do?" Yugi asked.

"Nothing," I replied, opening the door to KaibaCorp. "I'll tell ya later."

"Hey, Em, do you want to stay at my house tonight?" Yugi asked me. "Joey and Tristan are coming over and Joey wanted to know if you wanted to come. Teá has some school stuff to do, so, you want to?"

"I'll ask Kaiba," I told him. "If he says yes, I'll call you. But I'd better see him before I get in trouble. See ya later!"

"Do ya think Kaiba'll let her come?" Joey asked as the door shut behind me.

"It depends," Yugi replied as he and Joey walked back to his house.

"On what?"

"On whether or not Em can keep her temper under control when it comes to Kaiba."

"This is gonna suck beyond all belief," I muttered as I rode the elevator up to Kaiba's office. "Not only do I have to obey his every order today, but I'm gonna have to ask him to take tonight and tomorrow morning off as well." When the elevator doors opened, I walked right across the hall and into Kaiba's office. "Stupid rich boy."

"Why were you late?" Kaiba asked, not even looking up from his computer as I closed the door behind me.

"Joey and Yugi caught up with me when I was walking here and we just talked for a few minutes," I replied, shrugging. "Oh, and that reminds me…Is it possible at all that I could get tonight off and tomorrow morning? Yugi invited me, Tristan, and Joey to his house to spend the night."

"You'll only get one card for today and tomorrow, then," Kaiba said.

"Fine," I muttered. "Anything to get away from here," I thought.

Suddenly, the door opened and a boy about my age walked in, his arms full of papers. "Here are the reports for today, Mr. Kaiba," he said, setting them down on Kaiba's desk. Kaiba nodded slightly and the boy turned around, stopped, and stared at me.

"Alec?" I asked when I finally recognized him. "Alec Sonte? Is that you?"

"Emilee Hitachiin," Alec said, walking up to me. "I haven't seen you since you left home. How's your back?"

"Fine," I replied, turning back to Kaiba. "Kaiba, Alec's the one who fixed up my back after my dad passed out all the time."

"How does he know about your back?" Alec asked, turning back to look at Kaiba.

"I saw it and ordered an explanation," Kaiba replied. "Come here, puppy."

Cursing the fact that I had to follow his every order, I walked over to him, arms crossed. "Yes?" I asked, slightly annoyed.

"Take these to the file room on the 2nd floor," Kaiba ordered, gesturing to a stack of papers on his desk, a card on top. "Use this to gain access to the file room at the back."

"Fine," I muttered, taking the papers. I walked toward the door and into the elevator, kicking the button for the 2nd floor with my foot.

"Hey, Em!" Alec called, running after me. "Wait up!" He ran into the elevator just before the doors closed, leaning against the wall to catch his breath.

"Alec?" I asked. "What are you doing?"

"Well, I haven't seen you for a couple months so I wanted to see what was going on with you," Alec replied. "And first of all, I wanted to see how your back was doing. The last time you came by to get patched up, you had some serious cuts going on. So, let me see."

Sighing, I set the stacks of paper on the floor of the elevator and turned around. Alec hesitated slightly as he took the bottom edge of my shirt but lifted it up as much as I would allow. "Wow," he whistled as his hand traced the scars near my waist. "Em, you're really cut up."

"Yeah, well," I muttered, shivering as his fingers ran over one of my newest scars. "At least when I stay with Yugi, he or his grandpa don't get drunk and force me to hide and come to you as a result."

"Speaking of which, did you ever find out when your parents are getting home? 'Cause I'd at least like to have a head start on when I need to be home."

"Sorry, but I have no idea. They called last night and said that they were gonna stay longer than they expected, but they never told me when they were coming back."

As the elevator doors opened, Alec pulled my shirt back down and helped me with my papers, walking with me toward the file room at the very back.

"Hey, I've got one more question for you," Alec said as I ran the card Kaiba gave me through the keypad at the door, punching in the 4-digit code he had told me the night before.

"Shoot," I said, opening the door and walking in.

"Back in Kaiba's office, he called you something," Alec said, setting his papers on a table next to mine. "And frankly, I'd like to know why he called you it and why you are wearing what you are."

"Well, what did he call me? Answer that question and I'll answer yours."

"I can't remember. It was some name that clearly annoyed you. Puppy, I think it was."

"Fine, I'll explain. To him, I'm just a dog that needs to be taught obedience. He also calls my boyfriend a mutt and I'm just the first one he wants to teach obedience to."

"Your boyfriend? The only person I've ever heard Seto Kaiba call a mutt was Joey Wheeler…wait a minute…Are you telling me that Joey Wheeler is your boyfriend?!"

"I'm pretty sure he is. But that's beside the point right now. Anyway, to answer your second question, it's gonna be kind of a long explanation."

"I've got time."

"Okay, well, Yugi set up this duel for me with Kaiba and after I won, I slept over at his house since he'd already set up a room for me and was planning for me to stay over; Joey was with me so he stayed over as well. Anyway, the next morning, Kaiba mentioned something about teaching his dogs some obedience and after Joey and I left his place, I realized that I didn't have my deck with me."

"Wow, you've never done that before. You've always had your deck on you." Alec immediately shut up after I punched his arm, half-glaring at him.

"Shut up. When I went back up to my room to get it, it was gone and I had two cards and a note telling me to come to KaibaCorp to get the rest of it back. After walking all over KaibaCorp and only finding two more cards and another note and a video from Kaiba, I went back to his house and found him in his room flipping through my deck, saying something about my deck not making any sense and me being the only one who could understand and use it. He said that the only way I could get my deck back was to come work for him and earn a card back every day I work. So far I've gotten at least 10 or so cards and I'm not even close to getting my entire deck back."

"Can't you just steal it back? That's how you got it away from your father after he took it when he was drunk a while back."

"I could, but I'm not going to risk it. Besides, I have no idea where he keeps it. And if I miss a day of work without telling him the day before, he keeps my entire deck for as long as he wants. That's why I'm wearing this outfit; it's my uniform. Happy now?"

"A bit. Is it possible that you can get tonight off? I'd like to continue our conversation?"

"Actually, I'm heading over to Yugi's tonight to sleep over. He's inviting Tristan and Joey, too, so I've got tonight and tomorrow morning off."

"Oh." Alec sounded really disappointed.

"Hey, do you wanna come with me? I'm sure Yugi would understand. That way, you could help me keep my back covered and explain with me if anyone sees it."

"Sure, but doesn't Yugi know about your dad?"

"No, and the only people who do know are me, you, and Kaiba and I plan to keep it that way."

"Whatever you say, Em."


	10. Fathers and Friends

**Yami: How in the name of Ra did you manage to finish at least 6 chapters from the last time you uploaded?**

**Edgrl16: Well, I started writing this story in January, but I didn't think anyone would like it. So, I have at least 8 or so chapters left to upload before I start writing again.**

**Yami: You're hopeless…*shakes head***

**Edgrl16: Exactly. I pride myself on being hopeless. It's one of my best qualities!**

**Kaiba: May I ask what your other qualities are?**

**Edgrl16: None of your business!!**

**Yami: *whisper* I'll tell you later**

**Kaiba: *grin***

Heading back up to Kaiba's office, Alec and I continued talking about what was going on with us and I finally figured out why he was working for a guy like Kaiba.

"If I'd known that it would take you that long to put some papers away, I would've put you on a leash to hurry you up," Kaiba said as we walked into his office.

"Just ignore him…Just ignore him…" I kept repeating to myself, my hands clenching ever so slightly.

For the rest of the day, Kaiba had me run all over KaibaCorp doing his errands for him. Alec stayed with me, talking and helping when he could. Finally, it was 6 o'clock and I had permission to go to Yugi's house. "Um…are you forgetting something?" I asked before I left, holding out my hand.

Without looking up from his laptop, Kaiba reached into a drawer in his desk and pulled out my Brain Control spell card. "Let's go, Alec," I said, grabbing his arm as we walked out of Kaiba's office and out of KaibaCorp. As soon as we were outside, what should happen but my phone rings. Pulling it out of my pocket, I held it in front of Alec, showing him the caller id.

"Let me listen," he whispered as I flipped it open. Nodding, I held it between our ears, listening while Alec tried not to breathe so loud.

"Hello?" I asked, a slight nervous edge in my voice.

"Emilee," my father's voice came through the phone.

"Yes, sir," I replied, feeling Alec's arm slip around my waist to steady me.

"Your mother decided to go to a meeting tonight alone so I'd like to see you tonight," my father told me.

I gulped when I heard his voice slurring slightly as he talked. "Yes, sir. Where do you want to see me?" I asked. "I have plans tonight so it can only be a short meeting."

As soon as I got the address and room number of the hotel he was staying at, I closed the phone and slid it into my pocket, looking over at Alec. "Will you come with me?" I asked. "Please? He's drunk and I can't have Yugi seeing what happened."

"You know I will," Alec replied, hugging me. "My house isn't that far from where your dad is staying. Just go down 2 blocks to a small white house and just come in."

"Thanks, Alec," I said, smiling up at him. "Make sure to bring extra bandages to Yugi's tonight just in case." Alec nodded, then slipped an arm around my shoulder as we walked toward me dad's hotel.

The minute Alec left me in front of my father's room; I just stood there, staring at the door. We had stopped at his house first and I'd changed into his clothes, leaving my uniform, belts, deck, and ears in his room. Taking a deep breath, I opened the door and a hand immediately came out, grabbed the front of my shirt and pulled me in, slamming the door shut behind me. Looking up, I saw my dad, a half-empty bottle in his hand, many empty ones littering the floor.

"Dad, let go!" I exclaimed, struggling to loosen his grip on my shirt.

"You're finally here," my dad slurred, dragging me over to the couch in his room. "Where were you?"

"I was doing something for a friend," I replied, glad that my voice hadn't slipped up when I called Kaiba a friend. I tried to slip out of my dad's grip, but it was hard. My dad was pretty thin, but he was strong as he pinned my wrists to the back of the couch. "Why did you ask me here if mom's gone and you're drunk?"

"Your mother wanted to go to this meeting alone," my dad slurred, taking a knife out of his back pocket. "So I had a reason to visit my worthless excuse for a daughter."

Clenching my teeth together, I swung my leg up to his side and kicked him away, stumbling toward the door. Before I could get very far though, when I felt the handle of the knife jab into my side, making me fall to the floor, positive I was going to have a giant bruise there in the morning.

"Come back here, little girl," my father growled, using a hand to keep me on my stomach on the floor.

"Dad!" I exclaimed when I failed to pull myself up and out of his grip. I could feel the knife when he made the first cut diagonally down my back, the blood soaking through my shirt. He managed to cut me at least 6 more times before I finally got the knife out of his hand. I ran for the door and out of the hotel room, jumping over the banister for the 2nd floor, landing in a crouch on the concrete, wincing in pain when I overexerted my back.

I took off for Alec's house, ignoring the pain shooting through my back when I ran into someone. "Sorry," I managed to get through my teeth.

"Puppy?" I heard Kaiba ask.

I looked up and saw Kaiba standing in front of me, a slight confused look on his face. "Shouldn't you be at Yugi's?" he asked.

"I'm going," I said as I started walking again. "But I had to meet my father and now I've got to see Alec before I see Yugi or Joey." I hissed in pain when Kaiba took my shoulder when I walked in front of him. "Could you please let go? That really hurts."

"Did your father do this to you?" Kaiba asked. For a second, I thought I could sense a little bit of concern in his voice.

"Yeah, but Alec's gonna fix it up," I replied as I stared moving again. "You can come if you want to make sure he'll do it right."

Nodding slightly, Kaiba walked with me to Alec's house, asking me a few more questions about my parents before I walked up to Alec's room. "Be right there, Em!" I heard him call as I stopped in front of the floor-length mirror on his door. The blood had thoroughly soaked the back of Alec's shirt and, from the looks of it, run over the butt of his jeans and down the sides of the legs.

"You might not want to keep these clothes, Alec," I called to him, taking a second look at my back.

"That's okay," he called back. "I was gonna throw them out anyway. They were a little too small for me." A few minutes later, he came back, a wet T-shirt in his hands that he had at one point been wearing. "What's he doing here?" Alec asked, gesturing to Kaiba as he stripped off the shirt he was currently wearing.

"He wanted to make sure you did a good job with my back," I replied. "Apparently, he doesn't trust anyone with his puppy." I could see what could've been a grin on Kaiba's face, but it was gone before I could get a better look.

"Alright, girl, shirt off," Alec ordered, grabbing a box from under his bed.

"What do you mean shirt off?" Kaiba asked, then stared when I lifted Alec's shirt over my head, wincing as it scraped against my fresh cuts.

"Stop staring," I snapped, tossing the shirt at my feet. "Since I started dueling, I've been bandaging my chest back so I could move easier. My father only started drinking when I started dueling which was when I was maybe 8 or 9 so this made it a lot easier to move." When Kaiba looked up at my chest, he noticed that it did have a layer of bandages around it to keep it in place. Suddenly, my hand flew up, slapping Kaiba. "And that's for staring," I smirked.

"Calm down and sit," Alec ordered.

"So you'll follow his orders but not mine," Kaiba said, ignoring the pain in his cheek. "Would you like to explain that?"

"Simple," I replied as I sat on the carpet, shivering slightly as Alec took his wet T-shirt and ran it over my fresh cuts. "Alec's a friend and he's helping me at the moment. If you were the one who was bandaging my back for me, I'd follow your orders but you're not so I'm going to do my best to rebel against your orders."

Kaiba sighed and resorted to watching Alec wrap bandages around my fresh cuts before he noticed the large bruise that was forming on my side. I yelped in pain as he experimentally poked it.

"What was that for?!" I demanded, snapping my head around to glare at him. "That hurts!"

"How did you get this?" Kaiba asked calmly.

"I almost got away unharmed," I replied, placing a hand over the bruise. "He'd pinned me to the couch and pulled out a knife but before he could do anything, I kicked him away. To stop me from running out the door, he hit me with the handle of his knife and when I was on the ground, he kept me there so he could do what Alec is currently fixing."

"Done," Alec announced, running his hand gently across the newly applied bandages. Taking his hand, I stood up and admired his handiwork in the mirror.

"Good job, Alec," I said. "As usual."

"I live to serve," Alec replied, giving me a mock bow. "You ready to go?"

"Yeah, just let me change real quick," I said, turning back toward Kaiba. "Is it possible that you could take my uniform back tonight? Just so I don't have to wear it to Yugi's. I still have the collar and I unfortunately can't find a way to get it off so I'll still have that. Please?"

"Have a good time," Kaiba said, taking my uniform from Alec's bed before he walked out of the room.

"Wow," Alec said. "I've never seen Kaiba be nice to anyone beside his brother. You must be doing something to him."

"I don't know," I replied, walking over to Alec's closet. "But I'll need to borrow some clothes for tonight."

"Go ahead," Alec said, waving a hand at the closet. "Wear anything you'd like."

"Thanks," I told him, quickly changing out of his bloody jeans into a pair of ripped blue jeans and an old faded blue T-shirt. "Let's go."

Grinning, Alec grabbed the small backpack that held some extra clothes and bandages and followed me outside, walking with me toward Yugi's house.


	11. Truth or Dare

**Edgrl16: Too tired from killing my yami and Kaiba to talk. Review…read…thx for your support *snore***

"Hey, Emilee!" Yugi exclaimed happily as he opened the door to his game shop for me and Alec. "Who's your friend?"

"Yugi, this is Alec," I introduced as Alec tossed his bag by my makeshift bed which, amazingly, was still there behind the counter. "He's my friend from home. He works for Kaiba now and I thought it'd be okay if he stayed over, too."

"Sure," Yugi said, leading us upstairs to his room. "Tristan and Joey are trying to start a game of Truth or Dare with a twist but they wanted to wait to start until you got here."

"Oh, this'll be interesting," I whispered to Alec, making his stifle a laugh.

"Hey, Em!" Joey said as we walked into Yugi's room, closing the door behind us.

"Who's your friend?" Tristan asked.

"This is Alec," I replied. "He's my friend from home. He works for Kaiba now. Alec, this is Joey, Tristan, and you already know Yugi."

"Hey," Alec greeted, giving a slight wave.

"Hey, Em, wanna play our game of Truth or Dare?" Joey asked.

"Mind if I join?" a voice from the doorway asked.

Everyone's heads turned to see Duke Devlin standing at the doorway, a smug grin on his face. "What are you doing here, Duke?" Tristan asked.

"Yugi invited me," Duke replied, sitting in between me and Alec. "But I didn't realize he'd invited a girl to this."

"Actually, Emilee is more of a boy than a girl," Yugi admitted. "So she kind of fits right in."

"Considering that this girl kicked your butt at Duel Monsters and your little dice game," I smirked.

"Whatever," Duke said. "So what's with this Truth or Dare game? I heard it's got a bit of a twist."

"Yeah, everyone take 8 pieces of paper," Joey said, putting a stack of small papers and pencils in the middle of the circle we had made. "Now write 4 truth questions and 4 dares and put them in their correct bowls." He set 2 small bowls with either truth or dare on them, then took his papers and a pencil.

"This'll be really interesting," I thought as everyone else took their stuff and began writing.

After 10 minutes of silence and writing, everyone dropped their papers in the bowls. "I vote Alec should go first since he's new," I volunteered, smirking at Alec.

"You're gonna pay for that," Alec whispered to me. "I pick truth. I'm not sure I can trust you guys with dares yet." Reaching into the truth bowl, he looked at his paper and groaned at the question on it.

"Tell," I ordered, leaning back on my hands.

"Who was the first girl you've ever kissed?" Alec read, his face getting a light pink.

I shot up at this question. "Oh, I've got to find this out," I thought.

"So, who was the first girl you've ever kissed?" Tristan asked.

"I'm trying," Alec insisted. "I remember the second girl I kissed. Can that count?"

"Sorry, but no," Joey replied. "You could tell us though while you think of the first one."

"Got it," Alec said. "The first girl I kissed was a girl in my class named…Smiles! Her real name was Dawn, I think; her nickname came because she always smiled. The second girl I kissed was that little brat over there."

"You were Alec's second kiss?" Yugi asked in disbelief, staring at me.

"Yep," I replied, grinning. "And I gave him one hell of a kiss." I could see Joey get a little mad at this, so to make up for it, I whispered something to him about our next date and he cheered right up.

"Alright, Em, your turn," Alec dared. "Truth or Dare?"

"I pick dare," I said. "I don't trust any of you, but I'd rather not have a truth question." Digging around in the dare bowl, I grabbed a paper and as soon as I read it, my face became the color of Duke's bandana.

"What is it?" Yugi asked, noticing my embarrassment.

"You read it," I said, thrusting it at Joey.

"Kiss the person on your right for 10 seconds," he read. "That means…"

I looked over at the person sitting at my left and saw Duke grinning like a maniac. "Anyone but him," I muttered. "Please, I'd rather not do this."

"You picked it," Duke said, grinning smugly. "Now you have to go through with it." Taking a deep breath, I got up on my knees so I was tall as he was when he was sitting and leaned forward. Those 10 seconds were the longest seconds in my life. When it was finally over, I leaned back and sat back down.

"So?" Duke asked.

"I think I'll stick with Joey," I replied, grinning slightly. "It was a good kiss though."

Joey stuck out his tongue at Duke, grinning triumphantly. "Okay, Yugi, your turn," I said, pulling a knee up to my chest.

"I'll choose dare," Yugi replied, surprising us all. Reaching into the dare bowl, Yugi grinned at his choice. "Choose one person and they'll have to take a dare. Duke, you lose."

"Okay, who put that in there?" Tristan laughed. "It was genius."

"Doesn't matter," Duke said, looking at his dare paper. "I think I like my dare."

"Really?" I asked, looking over his shoulder at it. "What's it say?"

"Make one person take off one article of clothing," Duke replied. "And guess who I'm gonna pick. Girl, shirt off."

"Whoever put that in there is dead when this is done," I growled, standing up.

"Em, you sure you can do this?" Alec asked.

"Yeah," I replied.

"What are you talking about?" Joey asked.

"Okay, you guys have to promise not to ask questions until after the game is done," I said. "Promise?"

"Sure, now what's wrong?" all the guys beside Alec asked.

Taking in a deep breath, I pulled my shirt over my head, grimacing in pain as it scraped against my bandages. Everyone's eyes widened when they saw the criss-crossing bandages on my back. "You guys wanna know what happened?" I asked when they wouldn't stop staring. "I just fell out of a tree and cut myself up. It's no big deal. I'm fine." Everyone seemed to buy my excuse, but when I saw Joey, I could see that he knew I wasn't telling the truth.

Leaning over to Joey, I whispered, "I'll explain later. Just not with everyone around. Alec's fine since he already knows, but not anyone else, kay?"

Nodding slightly, Joey looked once more at my back before turning back to the game.

"How a guy like you could come up with a game like that, I'll never know," Duke muttered as we put the papers back in the bowls. "But it was fun, I'll have to admit."

"Yeah, for you," I said, setting the bowls against the wall.

"Come on, baby, it wasn't that bad," Duke grinned. Throughout the course of the game, I'd realized that I could trust none of the guys, especially Duke. I'd already had to take off my shirt because of his dare and kiss him because of mine. But it that weren't enough, I'd had to sit in his lap and kiss him yet again.

"Whatever," I muttered, moving to grab my shirt. "I'll be downstairs if anyone needs me. Joey, I'd like to talk to you alone please."

"Sure thing," Joey said, walking behind me as I headed down to my "bed."

"Joey, do you want to know the truth about what happened to me?" I asked, glad that Alec was already downstairs, ready to change my bandages before I went to sleep.

"Of course I do," Joey replied as Alec removed the bandages from my back.

"Wait just a sec, Alec," I said before he could replace them. "He deserves to know." I turned around so Joey could see the full extent of the damage done to my back.

"Em, what happened?" Joey asked in concern. "Did that rich boy do this to you?"

"No, Kaiba didn't do this to me," I replied, flinching as Joey's hand ghosted over my scars. "Joey, is your dad an alcoholic?"

"Of course, I've gotten beaten because of it," Joey told me. "Why, is your dad one?"

"Not exactly," I explained. "He drinks rarely but he gets extremely drunk when he does, so my mom leaves me alone with him every time he's drunk. If I can't hide well enough or get out in time, he takes a knife to my back until I get away. Alec's been helping me take care of it since it started."

"Doesn't your mom or your dad know what's going on?" Joey asked in concern.

"No, because every time dad wakes up, I've been all patched up and he can't remember a thing. Until my cuts heal into scars, I've always kept my back covered. My parents don't know anything. Even now, I always keep my back covered so I won't have to explain."

"Who knows?"

"Now…you, Alec, and Kaiba."

"Kaiba knows? How?"

"He just saw them and ordered an explanation." Alec moved over to re-bandage my back as Joey took a step back.

"Wow, and he does this every time he's drunk?" Joey asked.

"Uh-huh," I replied. "Alec's gotten to be kind of a pro when it comes to doing this stuff."

"Well, that's encouraging," Alec said as he finished bandaging my cuts.

"Oh, you know I love you," I teased.

"I'll see you tomorrow, then," Joey said, turning for the stairs.

"Hey, Joey, wait!" I called after him, running up to him. "Don't I get a goodnight kiss?"

Joey grinned and pulled me into a kiss, pulling away when we needed to breathe. "So how did that compare to Duke's kiss?" he asked, still grinning.

"You're by far the winner," I assured him, kissing him again before I turned back to Alec. "Tell him that and see what he says." As soon as Joey was out of sight and earshot, I turned to Alec and grabbed my white tanktop from him.

"Are you ever gonna tell him that Kaiba might be liking you?" Alec asked as I slipped under the blankets on my bed.

"No, and I'm sure what's going on with Kaiba, he's not gonna find out," I replied, patting the empty side of my bed. "Come on, you're not gonna sleep on the floor. I only take up half the bed."

Shrugging, Alec shed his shirt and wiggled under the blankets, quickly falling asleep.

"I hope I find out just what's going on with Kaiba," I thought before I fell asleep.


	12. A Surprise Kiss

**Yami: Since Edgrl16 is currently passed out on her bed, please enjoy a hearty breakfast of this story!! Toodles!!**

I woke up when I felt someone poke at my arm. Sleepily opening my eyes, I saw Alec sitting up, a grin on his face. "What?" I asked, running a hand through my hair.

"You were talking in your sleep," he replied, his grin growing. "And you said one name quite a few times. Wanna know who it was?"

"Fine," I yawned, sitting up.

"Duke," Alec replied, laughing even though I threw my pillow at him. "Calm down! I'm just kidding!"

"Make that joke again and I swear I'll convince Kaiba to fire you," I threatened, slipping the T-shirt lying on the counter over my head. As I was slipping a thick brown belt through my jeans, Joey, Tristan, Yugi, and Duke came down the stairs, all fully clothed and ready to go.

"You're leaving?" Joey asked. "Already?"

"Sorry, but I've got to go," I replied, pulling on my sneakers. "I'm gonna be in a lot of trouble if I'm late again."

"Can we come with you?" Alec asked as I opened the door.

"I guess, but don't blame me if you get in trouble," I said. All 5 boys followed me to Kaiba's and the whole time we were walking, I kept thinking that this didn't seem like a good idea.

"This is where you work?" Tristan asked as we walked into Kaiba's house and up to his room.

"Unfortunately, yes," I replied, grabbing a pair of capris and a tanktop from the closet. "Turn around for a sec." As quickly as possible with my still bandaged back, I changed into my uniform, climbing onto Kaiba's bed as they turned back around.

"And I thought the outfit I made Joey wear was degrading," Duke said as I reached under the bed for my deck.

"Shut up, dice boy," I growled, grabbing what I was looking for. Standing up, I slipped on my belts, putting my ears on after I'd let my hair down.

"And you have to wear this everyday?" Duke asked.

"Basically," I replied, walking out of Kaiba's room. "The only things I hate about this are the outfit and—"

"Puppy!" I heard Kaiba call from the library downstairs.

"—that," I finished, taking a slight running start as I slid down the banister. "See ya later!" All 5 boys just stared as I disappeared from their sight.

"Yes?" I asked when I walked into the library.

"Put these back for me," Kaiba ordered, gesturing to a small pile of books next to him. There were about 5 or 6, so I headed to the first shelf only to find that the book came from a tall shelf.

"Great," I muttered, climbing up the ladder one-handed. As I was putting the final book back, I slipped on the ladder and fell backwards. Before I hit the ground, though, someone caught me. I looked up and saw Kaiba looking down at me.

"Be more careful," he said, setting me down on my feet.

"Um, yeah," I replied. "Thanks."

"Here," Kaiba said, handing me the rest of my deck.

"What about our deal?" I asked, flipping through my deck.

"I'll still be expecting you to stay here overnight but you don't have to follow every order given if you don't want to," Kaiba replied.

"Kaiba, where's my Red-Eyes?" I asked, my violet eyes catching his blue ones.

"You know what you have to do to get it back," Kaiba replied, turning for the door.

"I know what I have to do to get it back," I thought as he left, "but I don't think I can."

Walking out of the library, I headed for the front door when I felt someone slip an arm around my shoulders. "What are you still doing here?" I asked, looking over at Alec.

"I wanted to check your back once more before I left," Alec replied as we walked outside. "What's wrong?"

"Kaiba gave me back my deck," I replied as we stopped by the side of the mansion so Alec could check my cuts.

"But that's good, isn't it?"

"No, because he still has my Red-Eyes. I mean, I still have to stay overnight, but it's up to me what orders I follow."

"So, what's the problem?"

"The problem is that there's only one way I can get my card back, but I don't know if I can do it."

"Well, what do you have to do?"

"That's the thing. I don't get why he can't do it himself."

"What do you have to do?"

"I have to tell my parents, mainly my dad, about my back."

"But you swore you'd never tell."

"But Kaiba doesn't know that."

"Then tell him."

"He won't believe me. But telling my parents is the only way I can get my Red-Eyes back."

"Then steal it back."

"What?!"

"Your heard me. You've got a good 6 or 7 hours before it gets dark. Just steal it back."

"B-But I don't even know where it is!"

"Just search his room. It can't be that hard to find."

"I-I can't!"

"Is the famous Emilee Hitachiin backing down from a challenge?"

"I am not! Fine, I'll do it. But if I ever do tell my parents, will you help?"

"You know I will, Em. You know I will."

After a final hug, I headed back inside and up to Kaiba's room, one goal on my mind.

~8 hours later~

"I can't believe I couldn't find it," I muttered, opening a drawer I'd checked at least 10 times. Suddenly, a hand took hold of my shoulder and I spun around only to be pinned between the dresser and Kaiba.

"Looking for this?" he asked, pulling my Red-Eyes out of his pocket.

"Is there any way I could get it back without telling my parents?" I asked. "I swore I'd never tell them."

"Quiet," Kaiba ordered, placing the card on the dresser behind me. "That is the only order I'll be expecting you to follow. That and when I tell you not to move. I won't force you to tell your parents until you're ready, but I do expect you to tell them at some point."

I smiled up at him, thanks showing in my eyes.

"Will you stay quiet for a few more minutes?" Kaiba asked, his gaze locking onto mine. After registering my nod, Kaiba leaned down ever so slightly and gently kissed me, pulling away after a few seconds.

My face grew a hot pink as I ran out of the room, Kaiba's kiss still lingering on my lips. "Why did he do that?" I thought. "He can't like me and besides, I like Joey. I mean, he's cute and a really good kisser—No! Don't think about that! Then again, he did give my Red-Eyes back…which I left in his room. Smart move, girl."

Mentally kicking myself for my mistake, I headed back up to Kaiba's room. Peeking in the doorway, I couldn't see Kaiba anywhere but I could see my Red-Eyes still on the dresser. Walking as quickly and quietly as I could, I reached for my card when someone else grabbed it, holding it just out of my reach.

"You forgot this, didn't you?" Kaiba asked as I stared up at my card, trying hard to avoid his gaze.

"Can I please have to back?" I asked, looking down at my shoes. Out of the corner of my eyes, I could see Alec sneaking up behind Kaiba. Before Kaiba knew it, Alec jumped up and grabbed my Red-Eyes, tossing it at me before he ran out of the room, me right behind him.

"Puppy, get back here!" Kaiba called after me as we slid down the banister together.

"Snooze you lose!" I called back, sticking out my tongue at him as Alec and I ran outside and down the street.

"How was that for stealing it back?" Alec asked, grinning.

"Very good, my partner-in-crime," I replied, grinning back at him. "Tomorrow, though, I'm not sure I'll get to see you. I'm going on a date with Joey and because of a bet we made, I have to do everything he says. Knowing Joey, that probably means that he won't allow me to see you at all tomorrow."

"As long as I can see you today and the day after, I'm fine," Alec said, slipping an arm around my shoulder as I slid my Red-Eyes into my case.

When we started walking, we didn't get too far when a car came up beside us and a person inside grabbed me and pulled me in, Alec coming along as well when I grabbed his hand. The door slammed shut and the limo sped away. Looking up, I saw 2 men in black suits sitting across from me and Alec.

"What?" I asked, slightly annoyed that I'd gotten pulled off the street.

"Mr. Pegasus wishes to duel you," one of the men replied as the limo came to a stop at a red light.

"Well, tell him that if he wants a duel, he has to tell me himself," I smirked, opening the door. Before they could make a move to grab me, Alec and I were gone, heading back to Kaiba's.

"Remind me why we're going back?" Alec asked.

"Because Kaiba will feed us," I replied, opening the front door. "That's why." I took Alec's hand and walked down a hallway.


	13. Complete Submission

**Kaiba: Since both the writer and her yami are currently unavailable, please read this and review so she can get on with her life and write another chapter.  
Joey: Kaiba! Don't make fun of the readers!**

**Edgrl16: *yawn* Both of you shut up and go away!**

**Yami: Read and review please**

"Face it," Alec said, "we're lost."

"I refuse to believe that," I replied, stopping at the end of a hallway. "Let's just go in here. Maybe there's a window and we could just climb out and start all over." Opening the door in front of me, I was immediately confronted by the two men that we'd ditched in Pegasus' limo. "Run," I told Alec, taking off down the hall, Alec right behind me. Looking over my shoulder, I saw both men chasing after us.

Eventually, we got back out to the foyer, the men still right behind us. As I looked back over my shoulder, I ran into someone. Looking up, I saw it was Kaiba. "Help me," I pleaded, hiding behind him.

"Ah, Kaiba-boy," Pegasus said, walking up in front of us. "I see you have a new pet."

"What do you want, Pegasus," Kaiba asked, looking over at Pegasus.

"I wanted to have a duel with Miss Hitachiin," Pegasus replied.

"Pup, do you want to duel him?" Kaiba asked, looking down at me.

Glancing at Pegasus, I looked back up at Kaiba and shook my head frantically. "Not now," I whispered, looking back over at Pegasus.

"Pegasus, I want you out of my house now," Kaiba ordered, glaring at the older man.

Grinning slightly, Pegasus turned for the door, calling something about him dueling me soon enough over his shoulder at me, the two men in suits following close behind him. As soon as he was gone, Kaiba looked down at me for an explanation.

"The last time I dueled him, he put someone's soul on the line," I explained. "I almost lost someone I cared for. I'm not risking it happening again."

"Alec," Kaiba said. "He's the one you almost lost."

"Uh-huh," I replied softly. "And I am not risking his soul again."

"Go up to my room and stay there," Kaiba ordered, taking Alec's arm as I walked upstairs. "Alec, go home. I need to speak to her alone and without you."

Alec started to protest, but left anyway, muttering something about it might be best for his job.

As soon as I got back up to Kaiba's room, I shut the door and fell back on his bed. "Well, looks like my little girl made it to the big time as some rich boy's pet."

I shot up off the bed, looking over at the window. My father sat on the windowsill, half-in, half-out. "Dad!" I exclaimed, taking a shaky step back. "I thought you'd be back with mom by now." I took another step back as he stepped forward. "Or at least passed out at the hotel," I thought.

"Not 'til tomorrow," my dad slurred, coming fully into the room. "You didn't even say goodbye, little girl." He reached inside his jacket and pulled out the same knife he had at the hotel, taking another step toward me.

"D-Dad, stop!" I exclaimed, taking another step back until I tripped backwards over Kaiba's bed, landing on my back.

My dad ignored me and took another step toward me, his movements shaky and slow. "No one's here to save you now," my dad said. "Your little friend's gone home and you're all alone."

"K-Kaiba!" I yelled, hearing nothing but my own frantic breathing as I struggled to move away from my drunken father.

Suddenly, the door flew open and Kaiba rushed in, stopping when he saw my father getting closer to me, the knife still in his hand. "Pup!" he exclaimed, making me look over at him. "Here."

Seeing my father getting closer, I scrambled off the bed and ran behind Kaiba. "Sit," Kaiba ordered. I immediately complied, sitting behind Kaiba's legs, one of my hands clutching his pant leg.

"Who do you think you are?!" my dad demanded, taking a step toward Kaiba.

"Her master," Kaiba replied, placing a hand on my head. "Now leave before I force you to leave myself."

"She's not worth the trouble, son," my dad said as he walked back over to the window, stashing his knife back inside his jacket. "But I'll be back for you little girl, trust me."

I tried my best to ignore him as I hid my face in Kaiba's leg. A few minutes later, I felt Kaiba move away, then heard his footsteps coming closer. I looked up as Kaiba stopped in front of me. "Stand," Kaiba ordered, waiting as I stood up in front of him. "Are you okay?"

"Y-Yeah," I replied, looking down. "Kaiba, why, when my dad asked who you were, you said you were my master?"

"Pup, what are you?"

"A 16-year-old girl." Kaiba's expression told me that it was the wrong answer. "A duelist." Kaiba's smirk seemed to tell me to try again. It took all my strength to say the answer Kaiba wanted. "A dog."

"Correct. And who do you belong to?"

"You. I belong to Seto Kaiba."

"And where do you sleep?"

"At my…my master's feet."

"So what does that make me?"

"A brat." Kaiba raised an eyebrow as I clapped a hand over my mouth. I hadn't realized I'd said that out loud.

"What am I?"

"My…my…my master."

"Good." Giving me a small pat on the head, Kaiba headed for the bathroom. "Get changed." As the door closed, I stripped off my uniform and slipped into my shorts and tanktop. Suddenly, I heard something hit against the window.

"What the—?" I thought, going over to the window and opening it. Poking my head out, I couldn't see anyone. "Hello? Anybody out there?" I called, going against my better judgment as I climbed out on the roof.

"Hey, Em! Down here!"

I looked over the edge, but I still didn't see anything. I took another step near the edge of the room, but I fell off, landing on my stomach in a pile of leaves. "Okay, ow…" I moaned. "Next time, if I heard a noise on the roof, I'm just leaving it alone."

"That would be a smart idea, little girl."

I hopped up out of the leaves and saw my dad leaning against the wall of Kaiba's mansion, his gaze never leaving me. "D-Dad!" I exclaimed, backing up slightly. "I thought Kaiba told you to leave."

"Not until I'm done with you, little girl," my dad replied, walking up to me. I backed up until I had my back to a tree, my dad right in front of me. "Now you have nowhere to run," he said, holding his knife up to my throat.

"K-Kaiba!" I yelled, scared of what my dad was gonna do. When he didn't come, I knew there was one thing that I had to say to make him help me. "M-Master!"

"So he's tamed you now," my dad said, moving his knife even closer than it already was. "I never expected you to sink as low as to submit to anyone."

"What did I tell you about leaving?"

I turned my head slightly and saw Kaiba standing behind my father. As soon as my dad turned his head to glare at Kaiba, I twisted away from him. "Let go!" I exclaimed when my dad grabbed the collar of my shirt. When he didn't, I kicked his arm away and ran behind Kaiba.

"Pup, stay here," Kaiba ordered, walking over to my dad.

"Please don't hurt him," I said. "He doesn't know what he's doing."

Kaiba nodded slightly, then walked up to my dad and punched his face, knocking him out.

"Dad!" I exclaimed, running over to him. Kneeling next to him, I saw that he was just unconscious.

"Come here, puppy," Kaiba ordered. Slowly standing up, I walked in front of him, my head bowed. "Whenever your father bothers you again, call and I'll help you."

Thinking about all the times that I had no one to help me whenever my dad was drunk…all the times I've only had Alec to count on when something happened, and immediately hugged Kaiba tightly. "Thank you," I said, my eyes getting slightly teary. "No one's ever done that for me. No one beside Alec and he lived too far away to hear me when I called for help."

Kaiba didn't do or say anything for a few seconds; it was like he'd never gotten hugged by a girl before. Then, finally, he wrapped his arms around me and gave me what could've been considered a hug. "As long as you belong to me, I'll always take care of you," he thought.

"Can I go to bed?" I asked, looking up at Kaiba.

Kaiba nodded, watching as I quickly climbed the tree onto the roof and crawled through the open window. Walking back inside and up to his room, he saw me curled up on my bed, fast asleep. "I'm proud of you, pup," he thought as he got into his own bed. "You've finally learned some obedience. But you have more to learn before we're done."


	14. Cars and Boards and Kisses oh my!

**Edgrl16: Okay, this chapter might be a little longer but that's because I couldn't find a way to cut 5 pages of writing in half.**

**Alec: Easy, get right of Joey and Kaiba.**

**Edgrl16: Yami, get rid of him.**

**Yami: Gladly. *tosses Alec out of the room and locks the door***

**Edgrl16: Now while Alec tries to get back in, please enjoy this lovely little chapter and remember to review.**

When I woke up in the morning, Kaiba was already gone, a note on his bed. "Puppy, be sure to be home before 8 tonight," I read, tossing it back on his bed as I turned for the closet. Grabbing a red T-shirt with black swirls all over it and a pair of black jeans, I quickly changed into them and pulled on a pair of black sneakers and my belts as I headed downstairs. Walking out the front door, I was immediately confronted with Alec, his hands behind his back.

"What are you doing here?" I asked, stopping in front of him.

"I came to see if you were all right," Alec replied innocently, keeping what was behind his back from my vision as we started walking down the street.

"Well, I'm fine," I said. "Now what's behind your back?"

"What did you leave behind that we used almost every day when you left home?" Alec asked.

"I don't know," I replied, looking over at him. "I left a lot of things behind. Now what is it?"

"Here you go," Alec smirked, pulling my skateboard out from my behind his back, his own in his other hand.

"My board!" I exclaimed excitedly. "How did you get this?"

"You gave me a key, remember?" Alec asked. "And I used it wisely to get us our boards back. Remember when we used to prove to all the guys at school that girls could do whatever they could?"

"You kidding?" I replied as we stepped on our skateboards and took off. "I loved the look on their faces when they saw what I could do."

"So where ya headed?" Alec asked as we rode down the sidewalk.

"To meet Joey for a date," I replied.

"So that means that I'll probably have to go a whole day without seeing you?" Alec pouted, sticking out his lower lip.

"Don't give me that look," I scolded as we rode down a street that led to a bunch of rundown apartments. "But, yes, you're probably right. Do you mind taking my board back to your house and stashing it there? I have to be back at Kaiba's by 8, so I'll be coming around your house at about 7 or so."

"Sure," Alec replied as we stopped in front of an apartment. "Before I forget, if the door's locked, the key's on top of the doorpost." Kicking our boards up into our hands, we walked up to the door together. Knocking once, I took a step back and waited.

After a minute, the door opened and Joey walked out, closing the door quickly behind him. Looking him up and down, I saw that he was wearing something different than he normally wore. Today, he wore a green camouflage shirt and a pair of blue jeans, though his hair looked as messy as it usually did. "Hey, Em," he said, grinning.

"You ready to go?" I asked. "I have to do everything you say today and I have to be home by 7, so we'd better go."

"Sure," Joey said, then stopped when he saw Alec. "He's not coming with us, is he?"

"Alec, I'll see you later, kay?" I asked, handing him my board.

"Sure," Alec replied, putting a foot on his board, my skateboard under his arm. "Later, Em!" And with that, he took off down the street, heading back to his own house.

"So, where we going?" I asked Joey as we walked down the street opposite from where Alec was headed.

"Anywhere we want," Joey replied, slipping an arm around my waist. "So, where do you want to go?"

"I don't know," I replied. "I'm the one who's supposed to follow your every order."

"I almost forgot," Joey said, grinning even more. "In that case, don't move."

Knowing what he was going to do, I stood completely still and grinned as Joey walked in front of me. Ignoring the order to stand still, I wrapped my arms around Joey's neck and kissed him, not letting him go until I was ready to pass out from lack of oxygen.

"You didn't follow my order," Joey smirked. "I'm pretty sure that qualifies as you getting punished."

"Try me," I dared, grinning. Joey grinned back, and I wasn't sure if I could trust the look he gave me. "Hey!" I exclaimed when Joey picked me up. I clung to his neck for fear of being dropped and looked up at his face. "What the heck was that for?!"

"To make sure you didn't run away," Joey replied.

"Yeah, right," I scoffed. "Like I would ever try to run away."

"I wanted to ask last night but I didn't want to say anything in front of the guys…what's going on with you and Alec?"

"Are you jealous?"

"No! I mean—just answer the question!"

"Whatever. Still think you're jealous, though. Listen, I've known Alec since…I think I was 4 when he moved in across the street from my house. His parents are gone all the time, so he lives all alone at his parents house or the one here they bought as a birthday present when he was 16."

"So you two never went out at all?"

"No, I kissed him because he wanted me to. Other than that, he's like a brother to me."

"So you guys just hung out?"

"Pretty much. When my parents were at work, we had nothing else to do, so we hit arcades, pizza places, and his basement."

"Least you two never dated."

"Joseph Wheeler, you're jealous and don't you dare try to deny it."

"Well, maybe I'm a little jealous."

"Told ya." Suddenly, Joey dropped me into a pile of leaves. "Hey!" I cried, pulling leaves out of my hair.

"Serves you right," Joey smirked, kneeling in front of me. Before I could talk back to him, Joey kissed me, pushing me back into the leaves. Grinning into the kiss, I wrapped my arms around Joey's neck and kissed back.

"Mhm…Joey…" I managed to get out. "Joey…I have to get home…"

"What time is it?" Joey asked, breathing heavily as he moved down to my neck, ignoring the collar still around it.

"I-It's about 7," I replied, trying to push him away. "If I don't get back, Kaiba's not gonna be happy…"

"And what do you care what moneybags thinks?"

"Because he lets me sleep at his house."

Sighing, Joey finally leaned back, kissing me one last time before allowing me to stand up. "It was totally worth losing that duel, though," he said.

"You're gonna regret that when you have to wear a dress tomorrow," I replied smugly, brushing the leaves off my pants and shirt. "I'll be expecting you to be at Kaiba's house tomorrow morning so I can see."

"Aw, come on," Joey pouted. "Do I have to?"

"Yes, 'cause you agreed to the bet and lost," I smirked, walking away, Joey right behind me.

When we got back to Joey's apartment, I found my skateboard leaning against the wall with a note from Alec reminding me to stop by. Stuffing the note in my pocket before Joey could see, I gave him a quick kiss before I took off down the street on my board.

When I got to Alec's house, the door was unlocked, so I just walked in, tossing my skateboard next to his on the couch right inside his house. "Hey, Alec!" I called, walking up the stairs and into his room. "Why did you leave my board at Joey's?"

"Well, I thought you might want to get back here faster," Alec replied innocently, sitting up from his place on the bed. "So, how was your date?"

"Well, I found out that Joey's definitely jealous of you," I said, grinning.

"Well, I'm jealous of him at the moment," Alec admitted, leaning back on his hands.

"You wanted to go on a date with me?"

"A little bit, yeah. You know, just as friends."

"You are so sweet."

"That's why you love me."

"Got that right." Sitting next to Alec on his bed, I leaned back and stared up at the ceiling.

"Whatcha thinkin' about?" he asked, looking over at me.

"Just some stuff," I replied, shrugging. "Remember when you said I needed to figure out what's going on with Kaiba? Since you said he's only really nice to his brother and that's it?"

"Of course," Alec said. "That was right before we stole your card back."

"And I thank you for that," I grinned, giving him a high-five. "Anyway, before that happened, he actually gave me the card back and ordered me to stand still."

"So what happened then?"

"Well, that's just the thing. After he ordered me to stand still, he kissed me."

"No way! I thought he was just teaching you obedience!"

"So did I! I'm not sure if he did that to…I don't know why he did it. Maybe he actually likes me. But that's when I ran out and had to…employ you to help me get my Red-Eyes back."

"Ah, yes. Employ me. Me and my special skills. Climbing trees, scaling rooftops, stealing cards…if you need any of those, I'm your man."

"And the best guy I know who can do it."

"Cause you couldn't get along without me."

"That's not true. If I didn't have you, I'd be just fine."

"Sure you would. Who would be your partner-in-crime…your supplier for all things mechanical and electric…your personal doctor…your all-time computer hacker…your brother from another mother?"

"You are such a dork."

"I may be a dork, but I'm your dork. Now am I right or aren't I?"

"I guess you're right, but I'd still be fine on my own."

"Again, sure you would. But you'd be facing a serious explanation to your parents when they saw your back. Without me, your cuts wouldn't be healing as nicely as they currently are."

"True, very true. I guess I wouldn't be getting very far without you, would I?"

"Damn right you wouldn't. Now, don't you have to be getting back to Kaiba?"

"You're right. Wanna come with?"

"You know I do. Let's go." As we both headed downstairs, Alec grabbed a set of keys from a hook on the wall, grabbing my arm as I opened the door.

"What?" I asked, confused on why Alec was leading me to his garage.

"Remember how we were saving up for a car last summer?" he asked, lifting his garage door. "Well, I got it. The transmission's shot at times, but I was hoping you could fix that for me."

"Oh my god, you got it!" I exclaimed happily, looking at the royal blue Ford Mustang in front of me.

"Yeah, and I want you to fix it," Alec said, handing me a set of extra keys. "My house key and the car keys are on that."

"Alec, this is amazing!" I exclaimed, hugging him. "Can I drive?"

"You got your license 4 months ago," Alec said, "I'd be honored if you would drive."

Beaming with joy, I hopped into the car, starting it up as Alec tossed his skateboard in the back and jumped in the passenger seat. "Try to keep it under 60," he said as I pulled out of his garage.

"No promises," I replied, grinning as I pulled onto the street. "As soon as I fix it, I'll bring it back good as new." And with that, I took off down the street, immediately breaking my promise to keep the car under 60.

As soon as we were in front of Kaiba's, I turned off the car and stuffed the keys in my pocket, me and Alec hopping out as he grabbed his skateboard. Looking at the car, I saw that I was gonna have to ask Kaiba for a few things before I could start working on it. "Here," Alec said, tossing my board as he got ready to ride back to his house. "I thought you'd rather keep this here rather than at my house."

"Thanks, Alec," I said, hugging him. "For everything. See you tomorrow?"

"Wouldn't miss it," Alec replied, grinning. "Take care of my baby, kay?"

"Which one?" I teased, turning for the door. "Me or the car?"

"Preferably both, if you please," Alec told me before he rode off. "See ya later!"

As soon as I couldn't see him anymore, I tucked my skateboard under my arm and walked inside, heading toward the stairs, stopping when I saw Kaiba.

"Pup," Kaiba said, walking up to me, "where were you? I called you 3 times. I thought I made it clear that you were to be back here by 8."

Looking at my watch, I saw it was half past 8 so I racked my brain for an excuse. "Oh, I think my phone's at Alec's house," I replied. "I had a date with Joey today. Wait! I think it's in the car."

"Who's car?" Kaiba asked, following me outside.

"Well, technically, it's Alec's since he's the one who bought it, but it's part mine because I helped him pay for half of it," I explained, leaning through the open window to grab my phone from the driver's seat. "I've got a key to the car and his house, but I'm keeping it here 'til I fix it." There was a bump against my foot and I looked down to see my skateboard coming to a stop at my foot, a not taped to it. "How did you get out here?" Taking the note, I read it over and handed it to Kaiba. "I think this was meant for you."

"Remember to take care of my babies," Kaiba read aloud. "Who is he talking about?"

"Oh, his babies are both me and the car," I replied, kicking my skateboard up in my hands. "He doesn't trust many people with taking care of me." Yawning, I walked back inside and up to Kaiba's room, tossing my board by the wall. Quickly changing into my pajamas, I crawled into bed and tossed my keys near my skateboard, falling asleep as Kaiba came in and fell asleep himself.


	15. Here we go swimming!

**Edgrl16: So tired…sleepy…please review…**

**Yami: Please listen to her. She was up 'till 4 in the morning working on this. So please, listen to the extremely tired girl and do as she says.**

"Pup, wake up."

The first thing I saw when I opened my eyes was a shirtless Kaiba. "What?" I asked, rubbing the sleep from my eyes as I slowly stood up. "What could possibly be important enough to wake me up?"

"We're going swimming," Kaiba replied, tossing me some clothes. "Now get dressed."

Groaning, I walked into the bathroom and looked at the clothes Kaiba had given me. The trunks were just a plain black with red flames running up the sides, but the shirt I had to think about. Taking a deep breath, I unwrapped my chest and slipped on the shirt, looking at the back in the mirror. It was a simple black tanktop design, but to stay on, the straps had to be tied behind my neck, leaving most of my back bare.

"Pup, let's go," Kaiba said.

Walking back into his room, I saw he was wearing a pair of white trunks with a blue stripe running up each side. "Huh, blue and white like his dragon," I thought as he took my arm and led me to an Olympic-size swimming pool outside the back of his mansion. From what I could tell, it went to at least 12 feet and came complete with diving boards.

Looking up at Kaiba, I grinned as he nodded, giving me permission to jump. Immediately walking to a diving board, I bounced a couple times, then executed a perfect dive into the water. "This is awesome!" I thought as I resurfaced.

"Mind if I join in?"

I turned my head and saw Alec walked toward the pool, a backpack in his hand. "Do you ever have school?" Kaiba asked as Alec stripped off his shirt, shoes, and socks, taking his phone and keys out of the pockets of his black trunks.

"Homeschooled," Alec replied. "I do it myself since my mom and dad left. Em, nice top."

"Shut up and get in," I said, floating over to where Kaiba was standing. I tried standing up, but it was the 6-foot point and being only 5'5, I immediately went under. Kaiba immediately picked me up and kept me above water as he set me up on the edge of the pool.

"Careful," he said as I stood up.

"Thanks," I replied. "I think I'll just stay out and tan for a couple minutes."

"Em, check my bag and pick which one you want," Alec said before he jumped in.

Opening the backpack next to Alec's clothes, I pulled out 4 or 5 towels all folded up. Unfolding them, I grinned at what I saw. See, Alec is a master at the art of photocopying onto different items. There were some things he was experimenting with; mainly Duel Monsters cards onto items. In my hands were towels with a Red-Eyes Black Dragon, a Blue-Eyes White Dragon, a Dark Magician, a Silent Magician Lv.8, and an Elemental Hero Flame Wingman, all cards in my deck.

"Nice job, Alec," I said, taking the Red-Eyes towel, setting the rest on a chair.

"I try," he replied as I laid back on the towel on the concrete, moving my arm over my eyes to block the sun.

"Hey, Kaiba," Alec said, swimming over to where Kaiba was sitting. "What's Em doin' to you? You're only nice to Mokuba."

"Ask me another question and you're fired," Kaiba threatened, looking over at me. I had pretty much fallen asleep, one leg bent at the knee.

"I've got an idea," Alec said, grinning evilly. He slowly got out of the water and walked over to me. Before I knew it, Alec had picked me up.

"Alec!" I exclaimed as he took me back to the pool. "Let me go!"

"Let you go? If you insist…" Alec replied, tossing me into the deep end of the pool. As I resurfaced, I could see Alec laughing his head off and even Kaiba was grinning slightly.

"That's it, I'm done for now," I said, pulling myself out of the water and grabbing my towel from the ground.

"Here, change into these," Alec said, handing me a pile of clothes. "I just had them made. Some bandages are in there as well. I even have extras just in case those get wet."

"I'll be right back," I called over my shoulder as I walked inside and into a bathroom. As soon as I was all changed, I had to admit that Alec was good at what he did. Twisting along the legs and waist of my black jeans was a Blue-Eyes White Dragon, its head resting on my left hip, and curving around the torso and chest of my white tanktop was a Red-Eyes Black Dragon, its head resting up near my neck. Even my black Converse high-tops had Winged Kuribohs on the outsides.

"Alec," I said as I walked back outside, "are these designs new?"

"Yep, made them last night," Alec replied, looking over at me. "I think they turned out pretty well."

"Well, I like them," I said, looking over at Kaiba who was sitting on the Blue-Eyes White Dragon towel. "What do you think, Kaiba?"

"They're…interesting," Kaiba replied, looking me up and down.

"They're unique," someone said behind us. "That's what they are."

"Joey!" I exclaimed, grinning as I turned around to face him. "What about school?"

"I ditched class today," Joey replied.

"Hey, Joey, there's an extra pair of trunks in my backpack if you want," Alec said, grabbing onto the edge of the pool.

"Will you come with me?" Joey asked, grabbing the swimsuit from Alec's backpack.

"I guess," I replied, walking with him inside. "I'll change back, but I'll probably not swim."

As soon as we were both changed, we walked back outside and Joey jumped in the pool as I sat on my towel which somehow would up next to Kaiba. "So why did you get out?" I asked.

"Alec was irritating me," Kaiba replied, looking over at me. "I thought about firing him for a few minutes."

"Please don't fire him," I said. "He really needs that job."

"I wouldn't fire him even if I wanted to," Kaiba told me. "He's one of the only people who aren't afraid of being fired when they work around me. Considering he's my messenger boy, it'll be hard to find one like him."

"See how special he is?" I grinned, looking over at Alec as he pushed Joey into the pool before jumping in himself. "He's a dork, but he's a good friend and in all the time he's been my friend, he's never betrayed me. He's never told anyone about my dad and so far, he hasn't told anyone about you and me."

What I didn't realize when I was talking with Kaiba was that Alec and Joey were sneaking up behind me. "Gotcha!" Alec exclaimed as he picked me up.

"Hey!" I cried, yelping when he tossed me to Joey who caught me with no trouble. "Quit it!"

"Kaiba, ya wanna help?" Alec asked as he caught me when Joey threw me back to him. "We're gonna get killed for this, but it's fun doing it anyway."

Standing up, Kaiba watched as Joey and Alec threw me back and forth between them a couple more times, then walked forward a couple steps so they could throw me to him. "You better be able to catch, moneybags!" Joey laughed as he tossed me to Kaiba.

Kaiba caught me as if he'd been doing this all his life and tossed me to Alec after a couple seconds. "Hey, Joey, ya wanna do what we were planning?" Alec asked as he tossed me again.

"Sure," Joey replied, tossing me to Kaiba. "Come on, rich boy, move to the edge."

Kaiba didn't toss me as he walked to the edge, flinching slightly as my arms wrapped tightly around his neck. "Come on, pup, let go," he said.

"Not until you promise not to toss me to either of them again," I said, glaring at Joey and Alec.

"I promise not to throw you to Alec or the mutt again," Kaiba promised, looking down at me.

"Thank you," I said. "Not could you please let me go. When my feet touch the ground, I'll let go of you."

Kaiba looked at Joey and Alec and immediately knew what they wanted him to do. Taking in a deep breath, Kaiba closed his eyes, tightened his grip on me, and jumped in the pool with me still in his arms. As soon as we were underwater, he let go of me but I didn't let go of his neck until we resurfaced. As soon as we were above water, I swam for the edge and pulled myself out.

"You guys are all jerks," I growled, wringing my hair out on the concrete.

"Yeah, but we're your jerks," Alec replied, grinning.

"Exactly," I said, going over to stand behind Joey and Alec. "And because of that, I have to deal with all three of you all the time now." Grinning evilly, I gave both Alec and Joey a good hard shove and they both went tumbling into the water, nearly falling on Kaiba as he sat on the edge. "And that's what you get for pushing me into the water when I didn't want to go. And now you're not gonna get me in again." Before they could do anything, I walked inside and changed into my clothes, walking back out to see Joey and Alec still staring at me from the water; Kaiba had migrated over to his towel.

"At least we got Kaiba to toss you in the pool," Alec grinned as I sat on my now-dry towel, shaking my head slightly to get more water out.

"I think it was worth it," Joey said, giving Alec a high-five.

"Great, now I've got another dork on my hands," I muttered, shaking my head as I stood up and started walking around to the front.

"Where are you going?" Alec asked.

"I'm gonna go take my baby for a spin to see how she's doing today," I replied, shoving my hands in my pockets as I continued walking. "See you guys later." I ignored Joey and Alec's protests and walked around to the front of Kaiba's mansion, pulling Alec's keys that I'd swiped from his backpack out of my pocket. "I just need some time away from them," I thought as I slid into the Mustang and started it up, listening to 'Champagne' as it came on the radio. "Maybe I'll just go to school. It'll be away from them and I'll just say I was sick. Besides, I've already made up my note." Stuffing my note that I'd forged Kaiba's signature on into the glovebox, I remembered my jacket in the trunk and drove off, heading for the school.


	16. Jerks Galore

**REVIEW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!**

When I got to school, it was lunchtime and I could see Yugi eating lunch with Tristan, Teá, and Duke out by a tree. They looked up as I drove closer and I could see Tristan's eyes widen as I parked near them. "Hey, guys," I said, taking my keys and unlocking the trunk, grabbing the black jacket in it. "What's up?"

"Is that Kaiba's car?" Tristan asked, still staring at my car as I slipped my jacket on, zipping it up.

"No, it's mine and Alec's," I replied, leaning against the hood. "I just got it fixed. What are you staring at?"

"Who fixed it for you?" Duke asked, walking up behind the car.

"I did," I replied, turning my head to look at him. "What?" I asked when I saw his expression. "Do you think I couldn't fix it?"

"You're a girl," Duke said. "You shouldn't be able to do it. And what is on your pants?"

"A Blue-Eyes," I replied, reaching through the window for my note. "Alec made it, my shirt, and my shoes."

"What's on your shirt?" Yugi asked.

"A Red-Eyes," I said, slipping my jacket off so he could see. "Now, what did you say about me not behind able to fix this car?"

"I want to see you prove that you can fix it," Duke said, grinning.

"Fine, I will," I said, glaring at him as I popped the trunk. "I needed to do something to it anyway. But if I prove it, will you admit that I know more about cars than you do?"

"Fine," Duke agreed as I reached in the trunk for a few of my tools and my skateboard.

"Watch and learn, dice boy," I smirked, lying back on my skateboard as I rolled under the car with my tools. After a few minutes, I rolled back out, grease streaked across my cheek. "Start it up," I said, tossing Duke the keys.

Shaking his head, Duke got in the car and started the ignition and revved the engine a couple times. It sounded perfect, just like I'd fixed it to be. "You were saying?" I asked smugly.

"You know more about cars than I do," Duke admitted, getting out of the car and tossed me back the keys.

"And don't you forget it," I smirked, pulling my forged note out of my back pocket. "Anyone want to come with me to turn this in so I can go to class with you guys?"

"Why do you want to go to school if you don't have to?" Yugi asked. "And have you seen Joey today?"

"First of all, Joey's at Kaiba's house," I explained, heading with the rest of the gang back into the school. "I left because I needed some time away from all three of them."

"Three?" Teá asked.

"Alec, Joey, and Kaiba," I replied. "Anyway, Kaiba ordered me to go swimming today and then Alec came by, then Joey did and I ended up sitting on a towel next to Kaiba in a swimsuit that showed pretty much my whole back."

"And what's wrong with that?" Teá asked.

"Um…nothing," I replied nervously. "It's just something I told the guys a couple nights ago. Please just don't ask until I have time to explain."

"So, what was wrong with you and Kaiba sitting by a pool while Alec and Joey swam?" Tristan asked.

"It's not that, it's what they did," I answered. "I was talking to Kaiba when Alec came up behind me and picked me up. Then, to add to the list of reasons why I'm going to kill him, he tossed me to Joey and I became the object the two used for a game of catch. Then they had to drag Kaiba into it and he joined in, but before he could toss me back to Alec, I wrapped my arms around his neck and wouldn't let go until he set me down on the ground."

"Anything else happen?" Duke asked.

"Well, he jumped in the pool with me still hanging onto his neck," I continued. "When I finally got out, I got changed and drove over here to get some time away from them."

"Well, let's get to class, then," Yugi said. "You can either come with me, Teá, and Tristan, or you could go with Duke since he has a different class then us right now."

"I think I'll go with Duke for right now," I said. "It'll be easier since I'll only have to deal with one person I know for right now. Oh, and by the way, if Kaiba or Alec comes looking for me, don't tell them where I am. Teá, Yugi and Tristan will tell you who Alec is and you'll probably see him sooner or later."

"Got it," Yugi said as he turned to head back to class. "See ya later, Em!"

"Hey, Em, are you sure you made the right choice on picking my class to go to?" Duke asked.

"Yeah, why? What's your class?" I asked back.

"Well, to be honest, its detention," Duke admitted. "And I know every person who's in detention today."

"Well, it can't be that bad, can it?" I wondered, following Duke inside. As soon as we walked into the detention room, I immediately wished that I was with Yugi. There were 6 other people in the room, one being Jack Twist.

"Well, it looks like you're finally done with that rich boy," Jack said as I closed the door and sat at a desk next to Duke.

"Are you kidding?" I asked. "I'm just hiding from him right now."

"Excuse me, but are you related to Yugi?"

I looked behind me and saw a boy that looked like a taller and a little bit more mature version of Yugi. "Yeah," I replied, moving around to sit on top of my desk. "You look a lot like him. Who are you?"

"You may call me Yami," he replied, still looking at me. "Now, could you please tell me your name?"

"Oh, I'm Yugi's cousin," I told him. "My name's Emilee Hitachiin. Now why do you look so much like Yugi?"

"I don't suppose he's told you about the spirit of his Millennium Puzzle?" Yami questioned.

"He mentioned it," I replied. "So you're him. Thanks for looking after my cousin. It makes my job a lot easier. But, who are the rest of you guys?"

"Malik and Marik," Yami introduced, pointing them out. "And Bakura and Ryou. An easy way to remember them is that Bakura is the one who'll most likely steal your stuff if you don't keep a close eye on it and Ryou is the innocent one. And Marik is evil like Bakura and Malik relates more to Ryou."

"Easy enough to remember," I said, grinning. "And I already know Jack, so I'm good."

"And you know me," Duke added, grinning as he leaned back in his chair.

"Unfortunately, more than I'd ever want to," I said, half-glaring at him.

"What happened between you two?" Marik asked.

"Because of a stupid Truth or Dare game that Joey and Tristan made up, I had to kiss him," I replied. "Twice."

"And if I could, I'd do it again," Duke smirked, looking up at me.

"Don't test me, dice boy," I threatened. "I will hurt you and you will regret it."

"You hurt me and I tell Kaiba," Duke threatened back, grinning.

"Fine," I muttered, crossing my arms. "But only because I don't want Kaiba mad at me right now."

"What's going on with you and Seto Kaiba?" Yami asked. "I overheard Yugi talking about it."

"It's nothing," I said. "Please don't ask."

"Shall we?" Bakura asked, looking over at Marik.

"We shall," Marik agreed as they both stood up. Before I knew it, Bakura had twisted my arms behind my back and Marik helped him as they held me still.

"Tell us," Marik whispered in my ear.

"You promise not to tell anyone?" I asked.

"We promise," Bakura said.

"Anyone I can trust?" I asked.

"We promise," Ryou replied. "Please tell."

"Fine," I said. "Kaiba took my deck and to get it back, I have to work for him to earn cards everyday. That means I have to follow his orders and live at his house. Happy now?"

No one said anything, but both Marik and Bakura released my arms and went back to sit by their hikaris.

Suddenly, there was a knock on the door and someone from the outside jiggled the doorknob only to find it locked. "Pup!" I heard Kaiba order from the other side.

"Oh, no," I said, looking over at the door. "This isn't good. If he finds me, he's never gonna let me out of his sight again."

"And why should we care?" Jack asked, propping his feet up on his desk.

"Because if never lets me out his sight, you won't get what you want," I replied, aiming my answer at Duke.

"Deal!" Duke answered immediately, grabbing my arm. "Can you stay absolutely quiet for about 2 minutes while I get Kaiba out of here?"

"Of course," I replied as Duke opened the window.

"Just to make sure," Duke said, grabbing my keys from there they were hanging out of my pocket, covering my mouth to stop any protests. "You make one sound and your car is mine."

Glaring at him, I climbed out the window and hid in the bushes, silently cursing Duke with every curse I knew.

"Kaiba, she's not here," Duke said before Kaiba could unlock the door. "Why would she be in detention?"

Kaiba didn't say anything, but Duke heard his footsteps walking away after a few seconds. Walking back over to the window, he helped me back in and handed me my keys.

"Never take my keys again," I told him, holding them tightly in my hand.

"You have a car?" Malik asked as I started to go back out the window.

"Yep, and if I don't get far away from here soon, Kaiba's gonna find and kill me," I replied. "See you guys later!"

"Hang on," Duke said. "I never finished my deal. For helping you hide, you have to get us out of here."

"Fine," I muttered. "Just keep up 'cause if I drive away and you're not in the car, I'm leaving." Almost immediately, all the guys with the exception of Jack climbed out the window after me and Yami grabbed Yugi when he saw him walking outside.

"Get in," I muttered, taking a deep breath as I watched Malik, Marik, Ryou, and Bakura pile into the back seat, Yami and Yugi sharing the passenger seat. I pushed the console back slightly and Duke sat in between the passenger and driver's seats as I slid into the driver's seat and stuck the keys in the ignition.

"I came to school to get away from 3 jerks and now I'm leaving with 5 jerks, Yami, and Yugi," I muttered, starting up the car. 'Dirty Little Girl' came on the radio as I pulled away from school and sped off down the street.

"Where are we going?" Yugi asked.

"The park," I replied. "I'm dropping you off there and going back to Kaiba's to try my luck with Joey and Alec."

"Come on, baby, don't tell me you're tired of me already," Duke said, slipping an arm around my shoulders.

"First of all, I'm not your baby," I told him, my hands tightening around the steering wheel. "And second of all, I have a boyfriend, remember?"

"Who's your boyfriend?" Ryou asked from the backseat.

"Joey," I replied, taking a sharp right turn before I stopped in front of the park. "Now all of you get out. You want to talk, fine. But not today." As soon as everyone was out of my car, I sped off back toward Kaiba's house, wondering how I'd gotten mixed up with so many people I wanted to kill at the moment.

"You know, you're a good driver."

I turned my head and saw Duke sitting in the backseat, Marik and Bakura at his side. "What the heck are you guys doing here?!" I demanded. "I thought I kicked you out!"

"We snuck back in," Marik replied, shrugging slightly.

"Well, get out," I ordered as I neared Kaiba's house. "I don't need Kaiba yelling at me for bringing home strays." Parking in front of the mansion, I pulled the keys out of the ignition and got out, walking around to the back where I suspected Joey and Alec still were.

"Here, Alec," I said, tossing his keys back in his backpack. "You can have your keys back. Thanks for letting me borrow them."

"Thanks for telling me," Alec muttered, pulling himself out of the pool as I unlaced my shoes and pulled them and my socks off. "Where did you go anyway?"

"School," I replied, setting my phone on a chair with the 3 extra towels. "I needed some time alone from you guys. Where's Kaiba?"

"Still looking for you," Alec said.

"Well, at least he's not here to yell at me," I muttered, not noticing Alec's smirk as Joey snuck up behind me.

"Forget about me?" Joey asked as he quickly picked me up.

"Let me go!" I exclaimed, struggling to get out of Joey's grip.

"Well, this is getting interesting," Bakura said, walking up behind Joey, Marik and Duke following him.

"Bakura!" I exclaimed. "Will you guys just leave?! I have enough problems as it is!!"

"Hey, Joey, toss her here," Alec said, walking in front of Joey. Joey nodded and tossed me to Alec who skillfully caught me.

"Ok, you're wet," I said, looking up at him.

"Let her go."

I turned my head and saw Kaiba walking toward us, looking pretty mad. "You three, leave now before I force you to leave myself," Kaiba ordered, looking at Marik, Bakura, and Duke. "She's going to school tomorrow, so you can see her there."

Duke shrugged and started walking away, Marik and Bakura following. "See ya tomorrow, Em!" he called over his shoulder.

"Alec, he said let me go!" I exclaimed, turning my attention back to Alec.

"You asked for it," Alec smirked, walking over to the edge of a diving board. "I'll let you go, then." As soon as he was at the edge of the board, Alec released his grip on me and I fell into 12 feet of water. My clothes dragged me deeper down into the pool and made it harder to swim back up to the surface. "Stupid boy," I thought, swimming as hard as I could up through the water. Just as I thought I was going to pass out from lack of oxygen, I grabbed the edge of the pool and broke through the surface, taking in a deep breath of air.

"Alec, you jerk!" I yelled at him, coughing out water as I talked. "You know I can't swim well when I'm in jeans!!"

"Sorry, I forgot," Alec apologized sincerely, helping me out of the pool. "How about I take Joey and go home and we'll see you tomorrow?"

"I'd have to say yes," I replied, half-glaring at him as I stood up and walked toward Kaiba.

"Go get into dry clothes," Kaiba ordered, moving a strand of wet hair out of my face.

Wringing out the edge of my shirt, I headed inside, watching Joey and Alec leave out of the corner of my eye as Kaiba followed me up to his room. "I'm sorry for throwing you in the pool this morning," Kaiba said as I changed into my pajamas.

"Well, you should be," I replied, wiggling under my blankets. "Now if you'll excuse me, I need to get to sleep because I apparently have school tomorrow."

"Actually, you don't," Kaiba told me. "Tomorrow is Saturday."

"You jerk," I thought, closing my eyes and falling asleep.

"I have to find a way to make it up to her," Kaiba thought as he fell asleep himself.


	17. Living Duel Monsters and Social Workers

**Yami: So, what happens in this chapter?**

**Edgrl16: Well, I'm pretty sure someone dies, Kaiba finds out another secret about Emilee, Emilee finds out about something she can now do, and Kaiba does something that no one would expect.**

**Yami: Sounds fun.**

**Edgrl16: Oh, it is. Read and find out…if you dare. *evil laugh***

When I woke up, I was sitting on a counter in the kitchen, leaning back against a wall.

"I see you're awake."

I turned my head and saw Kaiba looking up from his laptop, a half-empty cup of coffee next to him. "Do you ever get off that thing?" I asked. As an answer, Kaiba closed his laptop and held up a chocolate chip cookie, the first sweet I'd seen all week.

"Do you want this, puppy?" Kaiba asked, teasingly moving it back and forth in front of me.

"Yes," I replied, never taking my eyes off the cookie. "Please let me have the cookie."

"You'll get it when you earn it," Kaiba told me, hiding the cookie who knows where again. "Now go get dressed. Be sure to sear something nicer than usual."

"Stupid rich brat denying me my cookie," I silently cursed as I walked upstairs. "And anyway, none of my uniforms are really very…nice. Time to mix and match with Kaiba's clothes!" Flipping through the closet, I grabbed a white T-shirt, a brown, collared, button-down T-shirt, a pair of Kaiba's brown slacks that looked like they would fit me, a belt, and my brown Converse high-tops.

"Pup!" Kaiba called from downstairs. "Time to go!"

"Coming!" I called back as I finished tying my hair back in a ponytail. Leaving my brown shirt unbuttoned over my white one, I raced downstairs, stopping in front of Kaiba. I saw his approving look before he took my hand and led me out to his limo. "Where are we going?" I asked as we got in and drove off.

"I have a meeting with a couple clients to discuss merging their company with KaibaCorp," Kaiba explained. "They own a company called Sparkx Industries."

"Uh-oh," I said, biting down on my lower lip.

"What's wrong? They're the leading company in mechanics and technology."

"I know that, but that's not it. Sparkx Industries is owned and operated by…my parents. When one of them dies or when I become 18, I'll inherit it."

"So I'll be meeting your parents today?"

"Uh-huh. And I'd really appreciate it if you didn't tell them about our deal. I'll do anything to keep that a secret."

Kaiba didn't answer, just help me out of the limo as it stopped in front of KaibaCorp. I followed him as he walked into a conference room and sat down opposite a man and a woman, both in black suits.

"Mr. Kaiba?" the man asked. "We're from the foster care system. We've come to take Miss Hitachiin with us."

"Why?" Kaiba asked back. "And why aren't the owners of Sparks Industries here?"

"I'm sorry to say that Mrs. Hitachiin passed away yesterday of a heart attack," the woman replied. "We've been unable to find Mr. Hitachiin. Until he can be found, Miss Hitachiin will be put in foster care."

"What about Yugi?" I asked. "I can stay with him, can't I?"

"Unfortunately, Solomon Motou cannot accept custody of you," the man told me. "Now let's go." He walked over and took my arm, leading me to the door of the conference room.

"Wait," Kaiba said, standing up.

"Yes, Mr. Kaiba?" the woman asked.

"What if I took custody of her?" he asked. "I'm 18. I'm perfectly capable of taking care of her."

"Since you are of age, you may have custody of her until her father can be found," the man said as he and the woman started to leave again. "Good day, Mr. Kaiba."

"Kaiba, were you serious?" I asked, looking up at him as the doors closed.

"Who would you rather stay with?" Kaiba asked back. "Me or some random family?"

"Definitely you," I replied, grinning. "But…with mom dead, I now own Sparks Industries. Great. At least it's in Domino."

"Since I am now your guardian, you'll have the room next to mine," Kaiba said as we headed back home.

"Fine, but you have to stop calling me puppy," I said. "Pup is fine, but only that."

"Fine," Kaiba agreed as I walked up to my new room. "Yell if you need anything."

"I hope dad's okay," I thought as I closed my door behind me, grabbing my deck from a dresser. "He may be a drunk sometimes, but he's still my dad." Taking my Blue-Eyes out, I ran my hand over it before I put it back on the dresser with the rest of my deck.

A soft growl tore me from my thoughts and forced me to turn around. Lying on the floor was a life-size Blue-Eyes White Dragon and it was looking right at me. "What the—?" I thought, slowly moving forward, my hand outstretched. The dragon growled again, but it sounded more playful as it craned its neck so its head touched my hand. "Whatever I did, I love it!" I thought, running my hand over the Blue-Eyes. Remembering that I woke up early that morning, I curled up against the dragon's side and fell asleep, its head resting next to me as it laid down completely.

~ 4 hours later~

"Pup?" Kaiba asked, knocking on the door. "Pup? Are you okay?" When I didn't answer, Kaiba opened the door to find me still asleep, curled up against a living, breathing Blue-Eyes White Dragon.

Hearing Kaiba come in, the dragon lifted its head and growled softly at him. Gently nudging me awake, the dragon looked back at Kaiba as I opened my eyes. "Pup, what's going on?" Kaiba asked as I stood up and stretched.

"Don't ask me, I don't know," I replied, giving the Blue-Eyes a pat on the back. "Calm down, boy. Kaiba won't hurt you." The Blue-Eyes growled once more, but laid its head back down on the floor. "I ran my hand over his card, turned around, and he was lying here. Can I keep him? Please, Kaiba?"

"You may call me Seto," Kaiba told me, still staring at the dragon. "Do you know why he doesn't seem to like me?"

"Nope," I replied, looking down at the dragon. "But if he expects to stay out of his card, he's gonna learn to like you. But right now, Blue-Eyes, back in your card." As soon as the words left my mouth, the Blue-Eyes disappeared, leaving me and Kaiba alone. "Oh, this is so cool!" I exclaimed, grabbing my deck. "I've got to show Yugi! See ya later, Seto!"

"Be back before 8!" Kaiba called as the front door slammed shut.

"Yugi's gonna love this!" I thought, speeding off to his house in my car.

As soon as I got to Yugi's house, I pulled the keys out of the ignition and ran inside. "Yugi!" I exclaimed, seeing him at the counter of the game shop, talking with Tristan, Teá, and Joey. "You're not gonna believe this!"

"What's up, Em?" Yugi asked.

"Come on, you're got to see this," I replied, grabbing his arm. Leading him outside, I took him and the other 3 to the park.

"Em, what's wrong?" Yugi asked when we stopped.

"Just watch," I replied, taking out my deck. "Joey, what's your favorite monster. High level, if you please."

"Red-Eyes Black Dragon," Joey replied as I slid the card out of my deck. "Why?"

"Just watch," I said, running my hand over the card. A few seconds later, I could see the surprised look on my friends faces and turned around to see a Red-Eyes Black Dragon standing behind me.

"H-How are you doing that?" Joey asked.

"It's just a hologram, right?" Teá asked.

"Have you ever seen a hologram look so real before?" Tristan asked back.

"Go ahead," I said. "You can touch him. He really likes it here." I pointed to a spot just below the dragon's neck, then took a step back.

"When did you start doing this?" Yugi asked.

"When my mom died," I replied. All 4 of them turned to look at me for more of an explanation. "See, my mom died of a heart attack and my dad's nowhere to be found, so two social workers came to take me at Kaiba's meeting. So, Kaiba took custody of me and when I got home, I could do this."

"Who are you parents?" Tristan asked.

"Ever heard of Sparks Industries?"

"Your parents work there?"

"No, they own it. Wait, sorry, strike that. Since my mom died, I own it. Hang on, Red-Eyes, back in your card."

"Any guesses on how you can do that?" Joey asked.

"Maybe only one person can do it at a time," I guessed, slipping my Red-Eyes back in my deck. "And when my mom died, the ability was passed on to me."

"Have you tried it with any other cards?" Teá asked.

"Yeah, my Blue-Eyes at Kaiba's house," I replied. "Turns out, it doesn't like Kaiba very much."

"I would've paid to see the look on rich boy's face," Joey laughed.

"It was pretty funny," I agreed as we all started laughing.

"What's going on here?" Yami asked as he walked up behind Yugi.

"Em was just showing us her new ability," Yugi replied.

"May I see this ability?" Yami asked, looking over at me.

"Sure," I answered, pulling a card out of my deck. "I'll use Dark Magician." Running my hand over the card, I stuck it in my back pocket and turned around as Dark Magician appeared behind me.

"I don't believe it," Yami breathed, looking up at the spellcaster in front of him. "I've only heard of one person being able to do this and she lived over 5,000 years ago."

"Do you remember who she was?" I asked.

"I'm sorry, but I don't," Yami apologized. "She was a distant cousin of mine and I rarely saw her."

"I wonder if I'm related to her," I thought, sending Dark Magician back to his card.

"Hang on," Joey said. "You said that Kaiba's your guardian. What does that mean?"

"It means that Kaiba takes care of her," Teá answered for me.

"Basically," I agreed as my phone rang. "Hello?" I asked, bringing it up to my ear. "Yeah…Alright…Tell Aono to stop trying and I'll be right over."

"Where are ya goin'?" Joey asked as I dropped my phone into my shirt pocket and turned for my car.

"Sparkx has had Flare Corp. try to take it over ever since my parents started the company," I explained. "And now the owner of Flare is at Sparkx demanding to speak with the owner, mainly me, and guardian. Joey, come by later. I've got something to show you."

"It's like a girl version of Seto Kaiba," Joey thought as I drove away.


	18. Joey, Meet Burst

**Yami: Can you explain what happens in this chapter again?**

**Edgrl16: Let's just say that Joey finds out about Emilee's ability and I kinda leave off in a cliffhanger.**

**Yami: What do you mean by that?**

**Edgrl16: That, I'm not telling. This is exactly why I'm evil.**

**Yami: *glare***

"Why did Aono have to try to bargain?" I thought, parking my car in front of Sparkx Industries. "He couldn't bargain to save his life." Swiping my id card and punching in the code my parents forced me to memorize, I walked in the building. "When I'm done with Flare, he's so fired."

"Miss Hitachiin, thank you for coming on such short notice," Harry Aono, one of Sparkx's mechanics, said as I neared the board room. "I trust you—"

"Shut up and get out of my sight," I interrupted, turning to glare at him. "You could've cost me this company. Not get out of here before I force you out. You're fired." Ignoring anything Aono was saying, I walked into the board room and sat down across from the CEO of Flare Corp., Damien Mastan.

"Well, if it isn't the young CEO of Sparkx Industries," Damien said, folding his hands on the table.

"What do you want, Mastan?" I asked, glaring at him. "Whatever you want, you're not getting it."

"I'd prefer it if we waited until your guardian arrives for us to start this meeting," Damien said. "I'd quite enjoy seeing what reject family you've been forced to live with."

"He is not a reject!" I yelled at him, crossing my arms. "Just because you're 25 doesn't mean you can call him a reject!"

"We shall see," Damien smirked, leaning back in his chair.

"Miss Hitachiin, your guardian is here," the secretary, a young Moka Akashiya, buzzed from the phone.

"Send him in," I said, turning around as the door opened.

"Next time, pup, tell me in advance when you need me," Kaiba said as he walked in and stood behind me.

"Mr. Mastan, meet my guardian," I said, turning to face Damien again. "Seto Kaiba. Now, let's get started."

"I'll give you one last time to hand this company over peacefully," Damien said as he tore his gaze away from Kaiba, leaning toward me. "If not, I'm afraid I'll have to take it from you."

"Just try it," I smirked, my gaze unwavering. "This company is the last thing I have of my parents and I'm not giving it up without a fight. So go ahead and try it. But you're not getting Sparkx Industries until I'm dead."

Damien pursed his lips in anger as what I said sunk in completely. "Maybe the pup isn't completely useless when it comes to business," Kaiba thought, crossing his arms.

"Mastan, get out of this building before security takes you out by force," I said as I leaned back in my chair, propping my feet up on the table.

"I'm not done with you, Hitachiin," Damien growled, standing up.

"Bye-bye," I said smugly, giving him a mock wave as he left. Leaning my chair back, I pressed the intercom button on the wall phone. "Miss Akashiya, next time Mr. Mastan comes by, call me immediately and don't let him in," I said.

"Yes, Miss Hitachiin," Moka said.

Leaning back so the chair was flat on the ground again, I looked up at Kaiba. "What's wrong with you?" I asked.

"You act like a businessman and a 12-year-old girl mixed together," Kaiba replied, looking down at me.

"Yep," I smirked, leaning back in my chair again. "It's what annoys people the most. I used to take over the company when my parents were sick, so pretty much all the businesses Sparkx has dealt with know who I am. If being 16 and inheriting a major company doesn't get to them, my cocky attitude sure does."

"While you were gone, did you experiment more with your…ability?" Kaiba asked as we walked out of the board room, heading for the elevator.

"I did it with my Red-Eyes and Dark Magician," I replied as we got in the elevator and headed up to the top floor. "But I'm gonna try again with my Blue-Eyes and see if I can get him to like you."

"He's my best monster, so I don't understand why it wouldn't like me," Kaiba said as we stepped off the elevator and headed down the hall to my office.

"Maybe it's just because the card I used belongs to me," I guessed, opening the door to my office. I hadn't been in it in a while, so I just stood in the middle of the office and looked around. There were really no walls in the office, just glass so you could see everything around you outside and if you looked down, you could see Domino City spread out all around you. The office itself was pretty simple. A few couches, a table and a couple chairs, and an elegant desk covered in papers, computers, and some other stuff I couldn't identify.

"Pup, what does that door lead to?" Kaiba asked, gesturing toward a door near a corner of the room.

"Oh, when I had to take over the company while my parents were sick, I always got loaded down with work and wasn't able to go home, so I had to sleep here to finish all my work. Through that door is a bed and a bathroom." Taking out my Blue-Eyes White Dragon card from my deck, I ran my hand over it, grinning as I heard the familiar growl behind me.

"Hey, boy," I said, turning around to face the dragon. Seeing Kaiba, it started to growl again until I knelt down in front of it. "Come on, don't mind him. I gotta give you a name, though. Hmmm…What about Burst? One of your attacks is Burst Stream of Destruction, so I think it fits." The dragon snorted its approval, then went back to growling softly at Kaiba.

"Miss Hitachiin?" Moka buzzed in from the intercom on my phone. "There's a young man here who says his name is Joey Wheeler. He says you asked him to come today."

"Go ahead and send him up," I replied.

"Pup, if you cannot train him to like me, you are never to summon it in my house again," Kaiba said.

"But—" I insisted.

"I'm your guardian so you are to listen to me," Kaiba interrupted.

Sighing, I mumbled curses under my breath and turned back to look at Burst. "Okay, Burst, listen," I said, placing a hand on his head. "You need to learn to like him. If you don't, then I won't ever get to take you out of your card again." Burst growled once more, then gently nudged me forward with his nose. "What is it, boy? Do you wanna go out?" When Burst nudged me forward again, I breathed in deeply and started walking over to the window. Opening one of the windows, I waited as the dragon walked over to the window. Looking out, the dragon looked back at me. "Wait up on the roof." Burst walked out the window and started to fly up to the roof.

"Em?" Joey asked as he opened the door to my office.

"Hey, Joey," I said, grinning as I turned to face him. "You're just in time to see if I can train Burst to like Seto. Wanna watch?"

"Sure," Joey replied, following me as I headed over to a door outside my office, Kaiba following a little ways behind us. "I've got two questions."

"Go ahead," I said as we started to climb the stairs to the roof.

"First of all, who is Burst?"

"Burst is my Blue-Eyes White Dragon card. I had to give him a name because I couldn't just call him Blue-Eyes or something like that and one of his attacks is Burst Stream of Destruction, so I thought it fit."

"Okay, then. Second question, when did you start calling that rich boy Seto?"

"He told me he could call me that this morning after he accepted custody of me."

Joey didn't ask any more questions as I opened the door to the roof and stepped out. "Whoa," Joey breathed when he saw Burst standing on the roof, his wings outstretched.

"Joey, meet Burst," I said, grinning as I walked over to the dragon. Burst looked in Joey's direction and brought his head closer to Joey's. "It's okay," I told Joey when I saw him tense up. "He won't hurt you." Relaxing slightly, Joey grinning as Burst nuzzled his head against Joey's side. "Now watch this," I said, taking Kaiba's arm.

"Pup, what are you doing?" Kaiba asked as I brought him closer to the Blue-Eyes.

"Proving a point," I replied. Burst took one look at Kaiba and twisted his neck around my waist to keep from growling. "See? He doesn't like Seto at all."

"Remember, though," Kaiba said as he took a couple steps back from Burst, "if he doesn't learn to like me, he won't be allowed to be in the house ever again."

"I'm working on it," I said, pouting at him.

"Can he fly?" Joey asked.

"Sure he can," I replied. "He's a dragon, isn't he? I don't know if he could fly with someone riding him, though. I think I'll try, though." Gently pushing Burst's head back away from my waist, I walked over to his back. "Burst, a little help please?" I asked. Burst obediently moved his neck closer to me. Using his neck, I hopped up on the dragon's back, settling in between the spikes running down his back. "I pray to Ra this works," I thought.

"Good luck," Joey said as Burst started to flap his wings.

Taking a deep breath, I tightly closed my eyes as Burst left the ground, holding on to his neck, a little bit afraid of falling off. After a few seconds, I slowly opened my eyes and my grip on Burst's neck seemed to tighten. We were circling up around Sparkx Industries. Looking down, I could see two little dots on the top of the building that were Joey and Kaiba.

"Okay, Burst," I yelled over the wind. "Time to go back down." Burst roared in protest; apparently he wanted to keep flying. "We gotta go back down. I promise I'll let you fly around later." Burst growled a bit more, but flew down and landed back on the roof. "That was awesome!" I exclaimed, grinning as I slid off Burst's back. "You've got to try it!"

"Pass," Joey said. "Thanks, though."

"Miss Hitachiin."

I turned around and saw Moka standing behind us, the two social workers from this morning behind her. "I'm sorry, ma'am, but they insisted to see you."

"What do you want?" I asked, crossing my arms.

"I've come to take you home," my father said as he walked up in front of Moka.


	19. Justice is Served

**Yami: Why, when you were writing this, would you not let me see?**

**Edgrl16: Because I wanted to write this chapter on my own. Now go away so I can finish.**

**Yami: Stupid story keeping me away from my hikari…**

"Dad," I said, noticing that his voice was a little slurred.

"It's time to go, Miss Hitachiin," the woman social worker said, walking toward me.

"I don't want to go," I said, clinging to Kaiba's shirt. "I want to stay with Seto."

"Unfortunately, Mr. Kaiba is only your guardian when your father is nowhere to be found or in jail," the male social worker said, taking my arm.

I looked back at Kaiba with pleading eyes, but he just turned away, looking off at Domino. "Wait, my card!" I exclaimed, struggling to get back to Burst's card that I'd left on the roof. The social workers paid no attention to my struggles as they handed me over to my dad. "Joey, take care of Burst while I'm gone!" I called to him before I was pulled downstairs and into a black car, taking me back to my dad's hotel room.

"Why the heck didn't you stop them?!" Joey demanded, forcing Kaiba to face him. "You could've kept her away from that drunk bastard she calls a father!!"

"There was nothing I could do," Kaiba replied. "The deal was until her father was found, she would stay with me. Now that her father is back, there's nothing I can do about it."

Joey realized that there was nothing he could do anymore and went to sit by Burst, placing a hand on his head as the dragon nudged his side.

"Dad, let go!" I exclaimed, struggling to get out of my father's grip as the social workers drove away.

"So you've inherited your mother's gift, have you?" my dad said, tightening his grip on my wrist. "Then you're just as worthless as she was." Shoving me in the hotel room, my dad closed the door behind us and locked it, sticking the key in his pocket.

"Dad, have you been drinking since mom died?" I asked, taking a step back.

"What's it matter to you?!" my father yelled, stumbling as he walked back toward me. "All you're good for now is making me money!"

"Not again," I thought as my dad made a grab at my shirt, trying to pull me to the floor. Wanting to get out of there as soon as possible, I sucked in a deep breath and lunged forward, reaching into his pocket for the door key. Clutching my prize close to my chest, I ran for the door, feeling a knife cut across my back as I unlocked the door. Before I could get another cut, I ran out of the hotel room and toward a police station.

"Why, hello, young miss," a police officer said as I ran in. "What can I do for you?"

"My…my dad's right behind me…" I replied between breaths. "I need you to arrest him for child abuse for the past 8 or 9 years."

"I'm afraid I can't arrest anyone without evidence," the police officer told me.

"Is this enough evidence for you?!" I demanded, pulling my brown T-shirt off and pulling my white one up, turning around so the police officer could see my back.

"What are you doing, little girl?" my father asked as he came stumbling in the police station, his knife still in his hand.

"Sir, you're under arrest for child abuse," the officer said, slapping a pair of handcuffs on my dad before he could get too close.

"Dad," I thought as he was taken away. "I'm sorry."

"Miss?" another officer said as I pulled my T-shirt down and slipped my brown one on again. "Do you have someone to stay with?"

"M-My mom's dead, and the social workers said that when my dad couldn't be found or was in jail, I'd go back to living with Seto Kaiba as my legal guardian," I replied.

The officer nodded and went to call Kaiba as I sat down against a wall, wincing as the fresh cut on my back scrapped against the rough texture of the wall.

Within 2 minutes, Kaiba came rushing into the station, heading straight for me. "Pup," he said, picking me up. "What did you do?"

"I-I told someone that could help," I replied weakly, smiling painfully. "B-But I got another cut before I could get away."

"I'll take care of it," Kaiba said, carrying me to his limo. "Wheeler is waiting at our house with Burst."

"Thanks, Seto," I said, closing my eyes as I leaned against Kaiba's shoulder. Kaiba looked a little surprised, but relaxed and put his arm around my shoulders as I slept.

When we arrived at Kaiba's mansion, Kaiba decided it was best that he didn't wake me up, so he carried me inside and into my room, not surprised that Alec was in my room, asleep on the bed. "Wake up," Kaiba said, laying me on my stomach on the bed.

"What?" Alec asked, as he slowly sat up. "What happened to her?!"

"She was taken back to her father and she took him to him to the police," Kaiba explained. "Now fix her."

Nodding, Alec immediately tore the sheets off my bed into strips, quickly bandaging up the only cut my father had managed to give me. "Pup, wake up," Kaiba said, gently shaking me awake.

"Ugh…Seto?" I asked, slowly opening my eyes.

"Go outside and around to the back," Kaiba ordered. "Joey's out there trying to keep Burst from flying off to find you."

"Thanks, Seto!" I exclaimed, hugging him tightly before grabbing Alec's hand and running off outside.

"Who the heck is Burst?" Alec asked as we ran.

"You'll see," I replied, grinning. Running around to the back of the mansion, I saw Joey standing next to the pool. "Joey!" I exclaimed, hugging him.

"Em!" Joey exclaimed, surprised that I was back so soon. "What took ya?"

"Sorry, it's kinda hard to turn your father into the police," I replied, grinning. "Where's Burst?"

"He was right behind me," Joey said, looking around. "Sorry, Em. He must've flown off somewhere to find you."

"Someone want to explain to me who Burst is?" Alec asked.

"Hang on," I replied, bringing my fingers up to my mouth. Giving a sharp whistle, I looked up as I heard a familiar roar coming closer. "Alec, this is Burst, my Blue-Eyes White Dragon." Alec stared as Burst landed in front of me, nuzzling his head against my side.

"H-How?" Alec managed to get out.

"I'll explain later," I said, turning around when I heard someone coming closer. "Oh, no," I whispered when I saw the two social workers walking toward us. "What can they possibly want now?"

"Miss Hitachiin, I see you're back to living with Mr. Kaiba," the woman said. "I take it he is your legal guardian now?"

"Yeah, now what do you want?" I asked, crossing my arms. "Dad's in jail, so what could you possibly want with me now?"

"Miss Hitachiin, are you aware that you have a younger brother?" the man asked.

"Yeah, but I haven't seen him since I was 4," I replied. "I've talked to him, but I haven't seen him for at least 12 years."

"Jay Hitachiin was living with your father and was put into foster care until you were of the age you could become his legal guardian. Since you yourself have Mr. Kaiba as a legal guardian now, he is allowed to stay with you," the woman explained, gently pushing a boy about Mokuba's age with shaggy black hair with gold and burgundy streaks toward me, his violet eyes looking around nervously before coming to rest on me.

"Jay," I said, kneeling down to his level.

"Sis!" Jay cried, running over and hugging me.

"Jay, I'm so glad you're safe," I whispered in his ear as I picked him up. "I thought I'd never see you again."

"Good day, Miss Hitachiin," the man said as he and his partner turned for their car once again.

"Sis, is this where you live?" Jay asked, looking up at Kaiba's mansion.

"It's where we live," I corrected, turning back to look at Joey and Alec. "Can I talk to you guys later? I have to talk to Seto for a bit."

"Sure thing, Em," Alec said, grabbing Joey's arm. "Later."

"Burst, is there any way you could shrink down to the size of a dog so you can walk with me?" I asked, looking over at the dragon.

"Is that a Blue-Eyes White Dragon?" Jay asked, his eyes shining as he looked at the dragon.

"It sure is," I replied as Burst shrank down to the size of a golden retriever, walking behind me as I headed inside, Jay still in my arms. "Seto!" I called as we walked inside, setting Jay down on the ground, though he still clung to my leg, nervous of being in a new place.

"Pup, who is this?" Kaiba asked, walking up in front of me and Jay, half-glaring down at the now miniature Blue-Eyes.

"Seto, this is my younger brother, Jay," I replied, giving him a small pat on his head. "He's about Mokuba's age. He was put into foster care when I was about 4, so I haven't seen him in 12 years. The same social workers who took me away brought him to me since you can technically be his legal guardian as well as mine. Jay, this is Seto Kaiba."

"Hi," Jay said shyly, hiding behind my leg.

"Sorry," I apologized. "It'll take a while to get used to living here. Hey, Jay, why don't you go and play with Seto's brother, Mokuba. Where is he, anyway?"

"Just go down that hall," Kaiba replied, pointing to a hallway. "It'll be the 3rd door on your left. He should be playing the new video game he bought."

"Go ahead," I said, gently pushing Jay in the direction of the hallway.

"You never told me you had a brother," Kaiba said as we walked up to my room again.

"Well, I really never had a reason to," I replied. "I thought I'd never see my brother again after he was taken away."

"Well, he can stay in the room next to yours," Kaiba told me as we walked into my room, Burst following close behind me. "Just make sure that he doesn't get into any trouble."

"Thanks, Seto," I said, hugging him again before he left. Smiling down at Burst, I changed into my pajamas and slipped into bed, the mini Blue-Eyes curling up at the end of my bed.


	20. A Family Trait

**Edgrl16: Here's the next little chapter of Seto Kaiba's New Pet. I know it's a little short but that just means that the next chapter will be longer!**

**Yami: It better be…**

**Edgrl16: *gulp* P-Please review and read the next chapter! (you know, when I upload it)**

I woke up to the feeling of something nuzzling against my cheek. "Burst, quit it," I groaned, gently pushing the Blue-Eyes away. Remembering to ask Joey for my card back today, I stumbled out of bed and changed into an outfit kind of like yesterdays except in black and red. Walking out of my room with the dragon following like an obedient dog, I headed downstairs to the kitchen when I heard someone walking behind me.

"Hey, Jay," I said, turning to face him. "Did you sleep well?"

"Uh-huh," Jay replied, smiling. "Sis, this place is awesome!"

"Don't I know it," I thought, ruffling his hair a little. "Come on, let's get you something to eat," I said, taking Jay's hand as we walked to the kitchen. "What do you want, lil bro?"

"You can cook?" Jay asked as he sat at the bar in the middle of the kitchen.

"Of course I can cook," I replied, opening the refrigerator.

"Can I have pancakes, then?" Jay asked.

"Your wish is my command," I teased, pulling the ingredients for pancakes out.

Within 10 minutes, I had a huge stack of pancakes. "Here ya go, Jay," I said, setting the plate in front of him. "Dig in." Jay didn't need to be told twice. He finished off at least 12 of them.

"Thanks, sis," Jay said, leaning back in his chair as he held his stomach.

"Cool! Pancakes!"

I turned and saw Mokuba running for the leftover pancakes, Kaiba walking right behind him. "Seto, I thought you said the cook was out sick," Mokuba said, looking back at Kaiba.

"I made them," I told him, leaning against the bar. "Jay wanted them, so what could I do?"

"Give him cereal," Kaiba muttered, pouring himself a cup of coffee.

"Aw, you're no fun," I pouted, sticking my tongue out at him. Putting a couple pancakes on a small plate, I set them on the floor, watching as Burst snapped them all up. "Anyway, I need to take Jay to get him signed up for school today since he should technically be a freshman in high school."

"A freshman?" Kaiba asked, raising an eyebrow at me.

"He's kind of a genius," I replied. "I'll be back later tonight, kay?"

"Just don't be back too late," Kaiba said, waving his hand dismissively at me.

"Go put your shoes on, Jay," I said, grinning when I saw Burst following Jay. Obviously, my cards liked me and my brother, but not anyone else with the exception of Joey for some strange reason.

"See ya later," I called over my shoulder as I took Jay's hand when he came back downstairs, walking out the front door.

"Sis, how do you make the cards come to life?" Jay asked as he buckled himself into the Mustang before I started driving toward school.

"It's just something I can do now," I replied, looking back at Burst as he slept in the backseat. "You used to duel, though. Do you still have your deck?"

Reaching into the backpack at his feet, Jay pulled out a deck that was slightly worn from use. "Take a monster out that will preferably fit on your lap," I ordered, turning a corner. Flipping though his deck, Jay pulled out his Kuriboh card and placed the remainder of his deck back in his backpack. "Now, run your hand over it." Jay obediently ran his hand over the front of the card, almost yelling in surprise as a Kuriboh appeared on his lap.

"Cool!" he exclaimed, running a hand through its fur.

"Feel free to experiment," I said, parking in front of the school as Jay sent his Kuriboh back into its card. "Just make sure that its somewhere where no one will see you and make sure you'll be able to control the monster. If you're not sure, wait until I'm with you to try."

"Do you know anyone who was able to do this?" Jay asked.

"Mom, before she died," I replied. "Maybe it's passed on from generation to generation, but only the eldest daughter can pass it on unless there are none in which case the eldest son passes it on to his children. Do you understand?"

"I think," Jay said, taking my hand again as we got out of the car, Burst walking right beside me, still in his miniature form since there was no way we could get a life-size Blue-Eyes White Dragon in school without ruining the roof.

"Well, well, are you cheating on Wheeler already?"

I turned around and saw Marik and Bakura walking toward me and Jay. "Why are you guys here alone?" I asked as I started walking again, Jay keeping a firm grip on my hand. "I thought you guys didn't go anywhere without Malik and Ryou."

"We saw you and this boy and decided we wanted to know who you were cheating on Joey with," Bakura replied.

"Okay, first of all, I'm not cheating on Joey," I asked. "This is my little brother, Jay. He's going to be a freshman and I need to get him entered into the school system."

"Mind if we come with you?" Marik asked as he and Bakura followed us.

"Why don't you two spirits go back to your hikaris," I said, turning my head to glare at them. When they didn't listen, I sighed and looked down at Burst who was walking right next to me. "Burst, sic 'em." Burst turned around and growled at Marik and Bakura who immediately turned around and walked back where they had come from. Apparently, they knew the power the Blue-Eyes White Dragon held.

"Good boy, Burst," Jay said, grinning down at the dragon as it ran up to walk next to me again as we opened the door to the school office.

After 30 minutes of signing papers and discussing classes, Jay and I walked out into the hallway hand-in-hand, Burst waiting patiently outside the door for us. "We'd better get to class," I said, leading Jay to his first class. "Good luck, Jay. And make sure no one knows about what we can do yet. If you can, try to avoid Duel Monsters all together."

"Kay, see you later, sis," Jay said, hugging me before he walked into his new classroom.

"Be careful, Jay," I thought, reaching down and picking up Burst before I walked to my own class. "Flare will do anything to gain control of Sparkx and now Mastan will definitely learn about you and try to use you against me." Opening the door to my classroom, I saw that no one was there yet and sat at my desk, laying my head down and closing my eyes. As I fell asleep, Burst jumped out of my arms and curled up around my legs, falling asleep as well.


	21. Blackmail

**Edgrl16: 3 and a half pages later, I finally finished this!!**

**Yami: After I pressured you into doing it…**

**Edgrl16: Shut up!! I finished it on my own time by my own rules!!!**

**Yami: *pulls me closer* Of course you did, my little hikari. And the next chapter will be out real soon, won't it?**

**Edgrl16: *blush* O-Of c-course…**

"Hey, Em, wake up."

I opened my eyes and looked up at Joey standing in front of me. "Hey, Joey," I yawned, running a hand through my hair.

"What are you doing here?" he asked as I stretched my arms over my head.

"I had to take Jay here today," I replied. "He starts as a freshman today. He's what you might call a genius. Hey, Joey, do you have my Blue-Eyes? I can't put Burst back in his card without it."

"Here," Joey said, taking the card out of his back pocket. "So, what did moneybags say about you keeping Jay with you?"

"He said it was fine because Jay's my little brother and since he's Mokuba age, both boys can entertain each other since they pretty much like the same things," I replied. "And we found out when we were driving here this morning that Jay has the same ability I do."

"So, he can do stuff like…" Joey gestured at the still-sleeping Burst wrapped around my feet, "…stuff like him?"

"Exactly," I said. "Burst, time to get back in your card." Burst stirred slightly as I said those words and disappeared back into his card. Slipping it back in my deck, I looked out the window when something fuzzy bumped against my shoulder.

"W-What's that?" Joey asked, pointing at the fuzzy puffball floating in front of me.

"Kuriboh!" I exclaimed. Suddenly, kids started pouring into the classroom and I wrapped my arms around the duel monster, bringing it to my chest as I opened the window and let it go. "Kuriboh, what's wrong? Shouldn't you be in Jay's deck in his backpack?"

The Kuriboh cooed at me and looked up. Finally noticing the piece of notebook paper balancing on its head, I grabbed it and started reading. "Sis, sorry I had to do this but I had no choice," I read. "By the way, I named my Kuriboh! I named it Coo because of the sound it makes. Anyway, some weird-looking men in suits came into my class looking for you and me. I summoned Coo and sent him to you because I know you'll be able to help me. I'm hiding in the boy's locker room by the gym. I heard the men walking by a couple minutes ago and I'm not sure how much longer I can keep hiding from them. –Jay"

"What?" Joey asked when he noticed my hand tightening around the note. "What's wrong?"

"You know how I said I was the CEO of Sparkx Industries?" I growled. "Flare Corp. knows I'll never give up Sparkx Industries peacefully and without a fight, so I always kept my brother a secret and never told anyone that I even had siblings, that I was an only child. But now that Jay has come out of foster care of live with me, Flare knows that I have a younger brother and will use him to get to me. He sent Coo here saying that men in suits were coming into his class looking for us. I've got to get to him before they find him."

"What will they do if they find him?" Joey asked as I turned for the door.

"They'll blackmail me and force me to hand over Sparkx Industries," I replied, stuffing Jay's note into my shirt pocket. "Kind of like what happens with Mokuba and Seto sometimes, except sometimes rival companies to Sparkx do things a little bit more drastic and dangerous. They don't like to make mistakes."

"Hey, is that a Kuriboh?" someone asked as I started walking for the door, Coo floating right behind me.

"Coo, please stay in this card for right now and we'll get you back home soon," I said, holding out a blank card. Coo disappeared, reappearing on the card and I tucked it into my deck, sliding out my Blue-Eyes White Dragon card. Running my hand over it, I could hear most of the girls shriek as Burst appeared at my feet and I could hear the boys whistle at the sight of a living duel monster.

Burst heard the whistles coming from around the room and started pouncing on everything he saw with legs. "Great," I muttered, bringing my fingers up to my mouth. Giving a sharp whistle, I tapped my foot impatiently as I waited for my dragon to come back. "Burst, come on. We've got to save Jay." At the sound of my brother's name and my voice, Burst came bounding over to me, sitting down at my feet. "Joey," I said. "Stay here. I don't want you to get involved in this. Letting Flare get ahold of both my brother and my boyfriend would be catastrophic. Here, hold on to this for me. I'll come back for it when I find my brother." I tucked my Blue-Eyes, Kuriboh, and Red-Eyes cards in my shirt pocket then handed my deck to Joey.

"Come back safely," Joey said, kissing me on the cheek before I ran off, Burst right behind me.

"Jay, I'm coming," I thought as I raced to the locker rooms. About halfway there, I saw 2 men in suits, the Flare Corp. symbol, a red FC surrounded by orange, imprinted on their jackets.

"There she is!" one of them said, pointing at me. "Get her!"

"Crap," I thought, slipping as I turned around and balanced myself on one hand as I took off running in the opposite direction.

"Keep on her!" I heard the men say.

"Need a plan," I thought as I turned a corner and almost ran into a wall in the process. "Need a plan. Need a plan." Suddenly, I turned a corner and came into contact with a whole hall of students. "Got a plan," I grinned. "Burst! Up!" Burst leapt up into my arms and I held him tight as I blended in with the crowd, hiding Burst as best I could under my shirt. I ducked down when I heard the men getting closer and walked in a normal pace until I ducked into an empty classroom, locking the door behind me.

After a few minutes, I poked my head back out the classroom and when I didn't see anyone around, I let Burst down and headed to the locker room once again. "That was close, Burst," I whispered as I neared the locker room. "We've got to be more careful." Opening the door to the locker room, I looked around for any signs of Flare Corp. and closed the door behind me, quickly locking it so no one could follow me.

"Jay," I called softly. "Jay, where are you?"

"Big sister!" I heard Jay call. "Big sister, h-help!!"

"Jay!" I yelled, racing to the door at the back of the locker room that led to the gym. "Jay, where are you?!" Looking around, I saw Jay standing a few feet away from the door that led outside. "Jay!"

"Sis, please don't come any closer," Jay pleaded.

"Would you consider giving us Sparkx Industries now?"

I turned around and saw Damien walking toward me, 4 of his security officers right behind him. "Why did you take my brother?" I growled. "Come here, Jay."

Jay looked confused, but raced up to me, clutching the edge of my shirt as he hid behind me, Burst at his feet, growling at Damien. "He's just a little kid," I continued. "What could you possibly get from taking him?"

"Your company and your downfall," Damien replied, giving me a slightly evil grin.

"Well think again because I'm not letting you touch my brother," I said. "I'll take your security officers on any time."

"Let's see you try, little girl," Damien dared, snapping at his officers.

Hearing Damien call me the name my dad called me when he was drunk caused something to click inside me. Remembering all the times I'd seen my friends get hurt because of my dad, my hands clenched into fists even harder than before. I didn't notice as my nails dug into the palms of my hands causing thin lines of blood to run down my wrists. "That's it," I growled. "Bring it on. I'll do anything to protect the ones I love."

The smirk on Damien's face grew as the security officers behind him stepped forward. "Take it easy on her, boys," Damien said as the officers stepped closer. "I wouldn't want her being unable to sign Sparkx Industries over to Flare Corp."

"Jay, step back and make sure Burst doesn't get involved in this," I ordered, pushing Jay back. He immediately complied, wrapping his arms around Burst as he sank to the floor and watched.

"Big mistake," I thought as the officers charged at me. Getting the first one with my foot, I punched the second one and send both flying into the wall. "Wanna try again, boys?" I asked as I sent the third and fourth guards flying into the first two.

"You haven't seen the last of Damien Mastan," Damien said as he started to leave the gym. "I will get Sparkx Industries from you and there's nothing you can do to stop me."

"We'll just see," I smirked as I walked over to Jay. "Just to make sure you stay away from my brother for good…" I took my Red-Eyes Black Dragon card out of my shirt pocket and ran my hand over it, grinning evilly as it appeared behind me. "Red-Eyes Black Dragon, use Inferno Fire Blaze on him!"

The dragon immediately sent a giant ball of fire after Damien, giving him all the pain of the attack without the physical marks. Damien looked shocked and ran out of the gym, his officers stumbling after him. "You need a name as well," I said, looking up at my Red-Eyes. "First, you'll need to shrink a bit." As if hearing what I'd said, the dragon shrunk to the size of the Blue-Eyes in Jay's arms. "I've got it! I'll call you Blaze." Blaze apparently like his name and growled his approval, nudging my foot with his head.

"Where did you learn to do that?" Jay asked as I sent Blaze and Burst back to their cards and put Coo back in his correct card.

"I grew up with boys," I replied, slipping my dragon cards back in my shirt pocket. "It was either learn to fight or get trampled."

"Can you teach me?" Jay asked excitedly, hopping on my back as we headed back to where I'd left Joey.

"Maybe," I said. "Not tonight, though. I've got to work." Walking back into my classroom, I grinned when I saw Joey, my deck still in his hand. "I told you I'd be back for my deck," I said, grabbing it back and putting it back in my case.

"Are you leaving?" Joey asked as I turned for the door.

"I have to," I replied. "Sorry. Tell Alec to stop by my house tomorrow if you see him."

"Sis, are we going home?" Jay asked as I set him down so he could slide into the passenger seat of my car.

"Yep," I replied, starting the up the engine. "I'm not leaving you alone there after that little encounter. I'm gonna drop you off at the house and then I've gotta go to work for a while."

"Can I play video games with Mokuba, then?" Jay asked as I stopped in front of the mansion.

"Of course," I replied, smiling. "Tell Seto that I had to work on a new computer design and won't be home 'till late tonight."

"Don't overwork yourself, sis," Jay said, waving as I drove off.


	22. Working Late at the Office

**Edgrl16: You know, when I first wrote this, this chapter and the last 2 were one big chapter!**

**Yami: *yawn* That's really interesting, hikari. Are you going to be anytime soon?**

**Edgrl16: Just a sec. Please enjoy this chapter and review!!!**

As I was parking in front of Sparkx Industries, my shirt pocket suddenly started to vibrate. "What the heck?" I thought, reaching in and taking out the dragon cards that were in there. Opening the car door, I ran my hand over both cards and waited as Blaze and Burst appeared at my feet.

"You guys really wanted to get out of your cards, didn't you?" I asked as I turned for the door, both dragons following at my feet. "Well, you're gonna have to learn to stay in them because I can't have you guys following me everywhere. I really don't need people knowing that I can summon duel monsters to real life."

"Good afternoon, Miss Hitachiin," Moka said as I walked out of the elevator on the top floor.

"Miss Akashiya, please send a few blankets in," I said as I opened the door to my office. "And I'll probably be staying over, so you can leave when you wish." Closing the door behind me, I headed over to my desk and sat down, looking up at the door as it opened.

"Here you are, Miss Hitachiin," Moka said, setting some blankets on the table near the door. "I'll see you tomorrow morning."

"Thanks," I muttered as the door closed. Walking back over to the door, I grabbed the blankets and dropped them at the front of my desk. "Amazing what colors we have for blankets," I muttered as I separated the 4 blankets into 2 piles. One was red and black and the other was blue and white. "Come on, Blaze…Burst. If you want to stay out of your cards, just sit and hopefully sleep 'till I'm done."

Both dragons obediently sat on their blankets and laid down, falling asleep. "Let's see if I could fix this," I mumbled, sifting through the papers lying on my desk.

The next several hours were spent looking over reports and signing papers. Finally, it was about 11:30 at night and I was finally done with my paperwork. "Just got to fix this and I'm done," I said to myself as I opened a desk drawer and pulled out a few hard drives, setting them on my desk as I pulled out their blueprints. "What the heck did Aono do to mess this up this time?"

Going over the blueprints, I quickly found the many mistakes with the programs on the hard drives. "If I hadn't fired him for talking to Mastan, this would've been why I'd have fired him," I thought as I started to fix the programming. After a few hours of tweaking, I was finally done and was ready to pass out on my desk. Putting the hard drives back in the drawer, I stood up and stumbled over to the door where my spare bedroom was.

"Sorry, Jay," I thought as I climbed onto the bed. "I guess I won't be home tonight." Closing my eyes, I fell asleep without another thought about my brother, my dragons, or work.

A few minutes after I fell asleep, Kaiba walked into my office. "Where is she?" he thought when he saw Blaze and Burst still sleeping in front of my desk. "Jay said she would be home tonight and now it's 2 in the morning." Looking over to the wall, he saw the door that led to the bedroom and opened it up, immediately finding me fast asleep on the bed. "What am I going to do with you, puppy?" Kaiba thought as he walked over to the side of the bed. Putting a hand on my shoulder, he gently shook me awake.

"S-Seto?" I asked, still half-asleep. "Wh-What are you doing here?"

"Jay was worried about you so he and Mokuba both asked me to come find you," Kaiba replied, sitting on the edge of my bed.

"So, I take it I have to drive home now?" I asked, sleepily sitting up.

"I'm afraid so," Kaiba replied. "Do think you can stand up and walk?"

"I can't even keep my eyes open, let alone stand," I said. "And I've got to get Blaze and Burst as well."

"I'll drive," Kaiba said. "You can sleep if you want."

"Thanks, Seto," I replied, closing my eyes again and leaning against his shoulder.

Kaiba looked down at me and stood up, picking me up in his arms as he walked out the door. Taking the Red-Eyes and Blue-Eyes cards from my pocket, he gently shook me and handed me the cards. "You'll need to put them back in their cards," he said as my eyes slowly opened.

"Blaze, Burst, get in your cards," I mumbled, tucking the cards back in my shirt as they disappeared. Rubbing the tears that had come to my eyes from yawning away, I looked back up at Kaiba. His eyes immediately looked away from mine when he saw my face. "What?" I asked.

"Nothing, go back to sleep," Kaiba ordered as he started to walk out of my office and to the elevator. "If she looks at me with those eyes again," Kaiba thought as he pushed the button for the lobby, "I don't think I'll be able to control myself." As soon as the elevator doors opened, Kaiba readjusted his grip on me and walked outside to my car, pulling the keys out of my pocket. Setting me in the passenger seat, he walked around and sat in the driver's seat, starting up the engine.

Driving back to his mansion, Kaiba looked over at me a couple times as I shifted positions, smiling slightly. Parking in front of his house, he pulled the keys out of the ignition and got out, walking over to the passenger seat. Picking me up again, Kaiba walked inside and up the stairs, kicking the door to my room open. Slipping off the red shirt I was wearing over my black T-shirt, Kaiba set me on the bed and started walking out of my room.

"Thanks, Seto," I mumbled before the door closed.

Walking into his own room, Kaiba saw Jay sitting on his bed, Coo floating beside his head. "Did you find my sister?" Jay asked when he saw Kaiba, shooting off the bed.

"She's asleep in her room,"Kaiba replied.

"Thanks, Seto," Jay said, hugging him before running off to his own room.

"They really are brother and sister," Kaiba thought as he got into bed and fell asleep as well.


	23. Skirts and Social Workers

**Edgrl16: I know this is gonna be a bit long but that's only because I couldn't figure out a way to cut 5 pages of writing in half.**

**Yami: No, you just were too lazy to do it**

**Edgrl16: Shut up and go away! Please enjoy this!**

"Sis! Sis, wake up!"

My eyes snapped open when I heard Jay's frantic voice beside me. "What?" I asked, shooting up out of bed. "Okay…dizzy."

"There's a boy downstairs who says you told him to see you today," Jay replied as I slipped into a pair of jeans and a white T-shirt.

"Alec!" I exclaimed happily, racing downstairs with Jay on my heels. "Don't worry, Jay. Alec's fine."

"There's my girl," Alec said, grinning as I hugged him. "Where were you?"

"Yeah, sorry," I said, rubbing the back of my head. "Jay didn't know who you were and I was still asleep because I had to work late and—"

"Stop, I understand," Alec said, putting a hand over my mouth to cut me off. Looking down at Jay, he smiled and knelt down to his level. "Hey, dude. You don't have to be afraid of me. I'm your big sister's close friend."

Jay didn't say anything, just moved behind my leg as he ran his hand over Coo's card in his back pocket, the little Kuriboh floating beside his head.

"Guess he doesn't talk much," Alec said, standing up straight.

"He's just shy," I told him. "That's why he summons Coo. It's like he's someone to comfort Jay besides me. Come on, Jay. Don't be shy." Jay looked up at me then over at Alec and moved to stand beside me.

"You're my sister's friend?" Jay asked shyly.

"I sure hope I am," Alec replied, grinning. "If not, I've been bugging her way too much for the past 9 years."

Jay started giggling, knowing now that Alec was a friend. "Okay, Jay, will you be find staying with Alec for an hour or so? I have a meeting to go to and then I'll be right back."

"Sure, be careful," Jay said as I headed back upstairs to my room.

"Pup, what are you doing?" Kaiba asked as he walked in my room.

"I have a meeting to go to," I replied as I buttoned up a black collared T-shirt over my white one. Changing out of my jeans and into a pair of black slacks, I tucked both shirts in, though I kept my black high-tops on.

"Would you like to explain why you're dressing nicer than usual?" Kaiba asked as I walked out of my room and into his.

"I told you, I have a meeting to go to," I replied, looking through his closet. "I need to look good for this because the companies I'm talking with don't know that I'm the CEO yet. Can you please help me with that?"

Kaiba helped me as I tied a red tie around my neck, pulling my hair up in a ponytail. "How long will you be gone?" he asked as I headed downstairs.

"Maybe an hour?" I guessed, kissing Jay on the top of his head before I headed out to the car. "If I don't come back, someone's gonna have to come and save me. Listen, Alec's gonna keep Jay busy so don't worry about him. I'll see ya later."

"Good luck," Kaiba thought as I drove off.

"Let's hope they don't try to take advantage of me because I'm a girl," I thought, as I swiped my id card to enter Sparkx Industries. "Damien learned that when he first met me."

"Miss Hitachiin," Moka said, handing me a folder as I passed her. "Mark Cornick of Razz Co. and Alvin Green of Green Corp. are waiting for you in Conference Room 3."

Nodding my thanks, I switched my phone on vibrate and flipped through the contents of the folder in my hands as I rode the elevator up to the 6th floor. "Everything looks okay," I thought as the elevator door opened. "I just hope that this meeting goes well." Opening the door to the conference room, I immediately caught the looks of 25-year-old Mark Cornick and 40-year-old Alvin Green.

"Well, hello, young lady," Mark said, smiling at me as I sat down across from him and Alivn. "Are you an intern here?"

"Not really," I replied.

"Do you know where the CEO of this company is?" Alvin asked as I propped my feet up on the table and sat sideways in my chair, setting my folder in front of me.

"Sure do," I replied, nodding slightly.

"Would you like to tell us where he is?" Mark asked, folding his hands on the table.

"You're lookin' at her," I smirked, enjoying the shocked looks both men were giving me. "Hello, my name is Emilee Hitachiin."

"I thought Jeff and Darci Hitachiin were the owners of Sparkx Industries," Alvin said, recovering first.

"Well, mom's dead and dad's in jail, so I'm the one you want to talk to. If you want anything to do with my company," I said, sitting up straight again with my feet under the table. "Now let's get started.

~2 hours later~

"Miss Hitachiin?" Moka buzzed through the phone. "Your guardian is here."

"Send him up," I buzzed back, loosening my tie a bit. "Sorry, boys, but I'm gonna have to cut this meeting short. On your way out, talk with Miss Akashiya and she'll schedule us another meeting."

"Pup," Kaiba said as he opened the door to the conference room. "It's time to go."

"Later, boys," I smirked, following Kaiba back to the elevator. "Thank you so much for saving me. I think I was close to dying of boredom."

"What was that meeting about?" Kaiba asked as I told Moka good-bye and walked outside.

"Both those men are the owners of large computer companies," I replied as we got into my Mustang. "I was trying to get a deal with them that would benefit all 3 of our companies."

"And I take it didn't go over well?" Kaiba asked as I started driving.

"Not really," I admitted. "I was getting nowhere with them. Grown men are so irritating and confusing."

"Do I count as one of those?" Kaiba asked, raising an eyebrow at me.

"No, I count you as more of a rich brat who doesn't know what he has 'till its gone," I smirked as I parked in front of his mansion.

"Sis!" Jay exclaimed, running for me as I walked in the front door. "Can you take me and Mokuba to the mall? Please??"

"I guess," I replied, seeing his face light up.

"Told ya she'd say yes, Mokuba," Jay said as both boys grabbed each of my arms, leading me out to the car again, Alec right behind us.

"We'll be back later, Seto," Mokuba called over his shoulder as we all got into the Mustang.

"Why didn't you guys just ask Alec to drive you?" I asked as Alec started driving.

"Emilee, why are you wearing that?" Mokuba asked back, looking at my outfit.

"I had a meeting today," I replied. "Why? What's wrong with my clothes?"

"They're just not…feminine enough," Jay replied as Alec parked the car. "Sis, why don't you wear skirts?"

"Because they make me look innocent and like it's easy to take advantage of me," I explained as Jay and Mokuba dragged me inside.

"Alec, help her while we talk real quick," Jay said, shoving me into a store.

"I know she's Joey's girlfriend and all, but I know Seto likes her, too," Mokuba said as he and Jay stood outside the store. "He just doesn't want to admit it."

"Well, hopefully, he'll say something after what we're gonna do to her," Jay said, matching Mokuba's evil grin with one of his own. "Now, come on before she kills Alec." Both boys walked into the store, grabbed some clothes, and shoved them and me into a dressing room.

"I'm not doing this!" I called through the door. "You can't make me come out!"

"Do it or I'm telling Duke that you want another go with him," Alec threatened.

"Stupid Alec!" I thought, slamming my fist against the door. Taking a deep breath, I opened the door and faced the inevitable. All 3 boys' grins widened as I stood in front of them, blushing slightly.

"I knew there was a girl in you somewhere," Alec grinned. "We just had to bring her out."

"Shut up, Alec," I snapped. The boys had forced me into a black camisole that showed the tops of the scars covering my back, a black and red plaid miniskirt, and black combat boots. I still had my belts and deck, but I had a thick black bracelet around my right wrist. My hair was left down and thankfully covered the majority of the red leather dog collar still around my neck.

"Hey, what's on the back of the tag?" Alec asked, taking it between his fingers and turning it over. "If lost, please call (509)752-2677 or return to Seto Kaiba. Huh. The number listed…if you put it in letters, it spells SKC-CORP."

"I'm killing him later," I thought as Alec released my tag. "Can I change out of this yet?" I asked.

"No way!" Mokuba replied as we walked back out to the car. "You're at least staying in that until Seto sees you."

"Wonder what's so special about him seeing me?" I thought.

As soon as we got back to the mansion, I started to head up to my room, the clothes I'd changed out of under my arm. Walking into my room, I closed the door behind me and turned around to see Kaiba sitting on my bed. "What are you doing here, Seto?" I asked, tossing my clothes behind him.

"What are you wearing?" Kaiba asked, ignoring my question.

"Something our brothers and Alec made me wear," I replied as he walked up to me. "Why, do you like it?"

"I love it," Kaiba said, leaning down like he had before, and kissed me. A few seconds later, he pulled away and walked out of my room without another word.

"Why does he keep doing that?" I thought, biting my lower lip in frustration. Trying not to think about it, I quickly changed back into my old clothes, tying my tie back around my neck when I heard Jay call my name. "Coming!" I called, loosening my tie slightly. As I was heading downstairs, something in my deck started vibrating. "Fine, come on out," I muttered, taking out my Blue-Eyes and Red-Eyes, running my hands over both cards.

"What's wrong, Jay?" I asked, walking up behind him. I followed his gaze and immediately saw what was wrong. The two social workers were back.

"I'm afraid we were never properly introduced," the man said. "I'm Jameson and this is my partner, Hart."

"Yeah, I really don't care so why don't you tell me why the hell you're here?" I asked, moving Jay behind me.

The two social workers stepped aside and a couple of about 25 or so walked into sight. "Jay!" they exclaimed, running over to him.

Before they could touch him, though, he held his arms up to me and I gladly picked him up, holding him close as he summoned Coo. "Who are you and what do you want with my little brother?" I demanded, Blaze and Burst growling at my feet.

"Emilee, this is James and Wendy O'Connell," Hart said. "They were Jay's foster parents. They've come to take him back home with them."

"They're note taking him without me," I growled. "I've already lost my brother once, I'm not losing him again."

"Unfortunately, Mr. and Mrs. O'Connell only wish to have one child and they wish to take Jay back with them," Jameson said. "They feel he'll be better living with them then with you."

"They're not gonna take him," I growled again, setting him behind Blaze and Burst, both dragons protecting him as Coo floated protectively around him. "See this?" I asked, holding up my left arm. On my wrist was a thick black band with a red SI surrounded by little orange sparks on it. "This is the Sparkx Industries symbol. Jay and I both have one to prove we are part of the company."

"Jay? Do you have one?" Hart asked, looking over at Jay.

Nodding, Jay pulled up the right sleeve of his long-sleeved green shirt, revealing the thick black band with the Sparkx Industries symbol on it on his wrist.

"I had these made before Jay and I were separated," I continued. "I told him to always wear it to remember me by. I made him a promise. I promised him that I'd get him back someday and we'd be together again. I promised that I'd keep him safe. I've never broken a promise to him and I don't intend to start now."

"Jameson," Hart said. Jameson nodded and before I could get away, he and Hart held my arms behind my back, forcing me to my knees. Jay's foster parents started to move toward Jay, but stopped when Blaze and Burst growled at them.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you," I smirked. "Duel monsters can be such vicious creatures. Especially dragons like those two."

"Put them away," Jameson ordered, pulling their cards out of my pocket as Hart pulled out a gun, "or we shoot them."

Taking a look at the scared expression on Jay's face, I blinked back tears and sent my Red-Eyes and Blue-Eyes back to their cards. "Thank you for taking care of our little boy, Miss Hitachiin," Wendy said as she and her husband each took one of Jay's hands, forcing him to follow them. "But I think its time he went back to his real family."

"I am his real family," I said, looking up at her. "I'm the only family he's got left!"

"Not anymore," she whispered. As she walked out, the two social workers released me and followed. After a few seconds, I could hear tires squealing as they drove away.

"Jay," I whispered, tears starting to flow down my cheeks. Slowly standing up, I tried to walk upstairs, but couldn't. Finally, I turned and headed outside, falling to my knees outside the front door. "I'm sorry, little brother."

"What happened?" Kaiba asked as he and Mokuba walked up behind me; Alec had already gone home.

"Jay's foster family came and took him back," I replied softly, more tears starting to fall.

"Why didn't you stop them?" Kaiba asked as I slowly stood up and faced him. "Or even call us?"

"I wasn't thinking!" I yelled at him. "I was more focused on keeping my little brother with me!"

"Calm down, pup."

"You have no idea, rich boy! You and Mokuba have always been together! You have no idea what it's like to get your brother back after 12 years and then have him taking away again!!" I held up my wrist so he could see my band. "I made a promise to him when we got these. I promised him that we'd be together again and I'd keep him safe. I just broke that promise! So don't tell me what I should or shouldn't have done! You wouldn't have been able to do anything and you know damn well I'm right!!"

After my yelling rant, I pretty much broke down. The only things I remembered were Kaiba carrying me up to his room and setting me down on his bed and me crying myself to sleep.


	24. Master Planning

**Edgrl16: I think this is the shortest chapter I've written so far for this story.**

**Yami: That's amazing since you just love making these things so frickin' long!**

**Edgrl16: At least I write and am proud of it.**

**Yami: *glare***

**Edgrl16: That's better. Now go be a good little spirit and bother someone else. Please read and review!!!**

As soon as I woke up, the first thing I noticed was that I was in Kaiba's room. When I didn't see Kaiba anywhere, I crawled out of bed and changed into a clean version of the outfit I was wearing, a green tie stuffed in my back pocket just in case. Climbing out the window, I jumped off the roof and raced to my car, hopping in and starting it up. Picking up Alec on the way, I drove to Yugi's in record time. Luckily, Yugi, Joey, Teá, and Tristan were all there.

"I need your help," I said, pulling them out to the car.

"What's wrong, Em?" Yugi asked as I summoned Burst.

"I need you guys to distract Kaiba from coming to find me," I replied.

"Why?" Tristan asked.

"No questions 'till later," I said. "I'm gonna steal my little brother back." Before any of them could ask any questions, Burst and I took off running down the street. Suddenly, something brushed against my hand. "Coo!" I exclaimed as the little Kuriboh floated in front of me. "Can you show me where Jay is?"

As an answer, Coo led me to a small white house near the outskirts of Domino City. Sneaking around the back, I climbed the tree in the backyard and opened the window that Cool stopped in front of. Slipping in the room, I was immediately tackled to the ground.

"I knew you'd come," Jay said. "I knew you wouldn't leave me here."

"Okay, Jay…crushing me," I gasped.

"Oops, sorry, sis," Jay said as he got up so I could stand up.

"Listen, I'm not sure I could get you away right now but I'll be back when they go to sleep and I promise I'll get you out of this," I promised. "I know where you are now. They can't hide you from me anymore."

"I love you, big sister," Jay said, hugging me.

"I love you, too, little brother," I said, hugging him back. Pulling away, I held out my left wrist, Jay holding out his right arm. "Hitachiins never leave each other alone," I said.

"Sparkx kids always stick together," Jay grinned. Suddenly, we heard a door slam from downstairs.

"I'll be back after dark," I said, slipping out the window. "Burst, I need you full-sized now." I dropped out of the tree and landed on Burst's back, waving at Jay as we flew off.

After answering all questions and calming Kaiba down, it was pretty quiet until there was a knock on the door. Opening it, I saw Wendy O'Connell, Jay in front of her. "Jay!" I exclaimed as he ran up and hugged me.

I had barely held him for 2 seconds when Wendy, being the evil bitch that she was, ripped us apart. "Never touch my son again," she hissed, dragging Jay up to his old room.

"What do you mean by that?" I asked, leaning against the doorframe as I tied the green tie in my pocket around my neck. "I was headed to work soon and wanted to hug my little brother good-bye."

"Listen, you little brat," Wendy said, grabbing my tie to pull me closer. "You are no longer Jay's older sister. He is no longer a Hitachiin or your little brother. He is an O'Connell and I don't allow my son to touch strangers."

"You mean I can't ever touch or see my little brother again?" I asked, pushing her off me.

"That's exactly what I'm saying," Wendy hissed. "He will not inherit Sparkx Industries and you two are no longer family. Oh, and here." She put Jay's band in my hand. "He doesn't need this anymore."

"That's it, lady," I said, my hand tightening over around Jay's band. "You just pushed an extremely pissed off CEO over the edge."

"CEO, huh? You're not mature enough for that job."

"Oh, you're gonna get it now." I reached back to punch her when someone grabbed my waist, pulling me into him as he kept my arms at my side.

"She's not worth it," Kaiba whispered in my ear as he held me still.

"Keep that brat of yours on a tighter leash, Kaiba," Wendy ordered, glaring at me.

"I suggest you leave before I let her finish what she started," Kaiba threatened.

"Before I go," Wendy said. "Here. He won't be needing this either." She put Jay's deck in my pocket, then walked out of the mansion with Jay.

"How did she get you all worked up?" Kaiba asked as he let me go.

"She said that Jay and I were no longer family and that he wasn't a Hitachiin anymore," I replied, trying to calm down.

"So, what are you going to do about it?"

"That's just the thing. I've got a plan."

At about 11 o'clock, it was finally dark enough to go through with my plan. Kaiba drove me to the O'Connells house, then drove back home after dropping me off in the back. Climbing back up the tree, I slipped through Jay's open window. "Jay," I whispered, gently shaking him awake. "Come on, it's time to go."

"Sis, do you have my band?" Jay asked as he rolled out of bed, ready to go.

Slipping it on his wrist, I handed him back his deck. "Let's get going," I said, smiling at him as he climbed out the window.

Suddenly, the door opened and Wendy came walking in. "Goodnight, swee—" She stopped when she saw Jay sitting in the tree outside, then she noticed me. "You…" I almost got out the window when she grabbed my leg and pulled me back in the room.

"Jay!" I yelled, tossing him my Blue-Eyes card. "Summon Burst!" As Jay summoned the dragon, I twisted around and kicked Wendy's legs out from under her, slipping out of her grip. Forgoing the tree completely, I jumped out the window, grabbed Jay, and landed on Burst as the dragon took off for Kaiba's mansion.

"Told ya I'd be back," I said softly as I held Jay tightly. "No one can tell me you're not my brother and get away with it."

When Burst landed, I slid off him and helped Jay down, sending the Blue-Eyes back to his card. As we walked inside, the first thing I noticed was Wendy and the damn social workers who had started it, Kaiba talking to the three of them.

"There she is," Wendy said, finally noticing us.

"This isn't good," I thought, Jay and me moving to stand beside Kaiba.

"She took my baby from me," Wendy continued, clapping her hands to her heart.

"Good actor," I thought, rolling my eyes.

"Em, what's going on?"

I turned for the door and saw Joey staring between us. "Joey, stay back and be quiet," I ordered as he started to walk toward me.

"But—" Joey started to argue.

"You heard her, mutt," Kaiba interrupted. "Heel." Joey muttered curses under his breath, but sat on the stairs behind us, watching what was happening.

"Miss Hitachiin," Jameson said. "Mrs. O'Connell called us when we heard that you broke into her house and took Mr. Hitachiin here."

"Technically, Jay left the window open for me, so I broke nothing and he wanted to come with me," I corrected, grinning.

"Pray tell why you took Jay back?" Hart asked.

"Because little Miss I'm-so-perfect over there told me that I could never see my brother again," I replied. "She said that we were no longer family and that I could never see, speak, or touch him again."

"Listen, you little brat," Wendy hissed. "You give me back my son or I'll have you arrested for breaking and entering, not to mention kidnapping."

"We will go through with those charges, Miss Hitachiin," Jameson said. "You'll be facing 15 years in juvenile hall to start."

Clenching my teeth, I released my grip on Jay as Wendy pulled him back toward her. "You come after my son again and I will have you arrested," Wendy threatened as she dragged Jay out to the car, Jameson and Hart following close behind.

"Are you okay, pup?" Kaiba asked as I heard the car drive away.

"Am I okay?" I repeated, turning to glare at him, tears in my eyes again. "I just lost my brother for the second time! I can never get him back now! It's over!!"

"Mutt, calm her down so I can make a few calls," Kaiba ordered as he walked through a door, closing it behind him.

"Hey, it's okay," Joey said, wrapping his arms around me as I put my head on his shoulder.

"No, you don't understand," I whispered, my tears staining the shoulder of his shirt. "I'll never be able to see my brother again. I'll never be able to talk to him again. Nothing anyone can do will change that."

"You'll find a way," Joey said, softly stroking my hair. "You're the head of Sparkx Industries. You can do anything."

"No, I can't," I replied. "If I go near him, I get arrested. There's nothing I can do to help this."

Joey didn't say anything else, but he picked me up and carried me to my room. "Can I stay with you tonight?" he asked softly, laying me down on my bed. I nodded slightly and closed my eyes as Joey laid next to me, wrapping his arms around me before he, too, fell asleep.


	25. Striking a Deal

**Edgrl16: And here is the next chapter of my amazing story!!!**

**Yami: It's only amazing to you, hikari**

**Edgrl16: *pout* Are you saying you don't like it?**

**Yami: *hug* Of course I like it, hikari**

**Edgrl16: *sniff* Thanks! Please enjoy!**

"Pup, wake up."

Opening my eyes, I saw Kaiba looking at me and Joey from the doorway. "What?" I asked, sitting up.

"Get changed," Kaiba replied, turning for the stairs again. "I need you to come with me."

As he closed the door, I sighed and stood up, walking toward my closet. Stripping off the clothes I'd slept in, I pulled on a green T-shirt and a pair of black jeans, kissing Joey on the top of the head before I left him sleeping in my bed. Walking downstairs, I followed Kaiba to his limo, keeping quiet as we drove off down the street.

"Where are we going?" I finally asked, avoiding any eye contact with Kaiba.

"To your brother's foster home," Kaiba replied, lifting my chin to catch my eyes.

"B-But I can't go back there," I insisted, my hand playing aimlessly with the Sparkx band on my wrist. "I'll get arrested."

"They just said you couldn't touch or speak to him," Kaiba said, pulling something out of his pocket. "And I intend to make sure you do neither." He reached up to my neck and when he pulled back, I saw what he'd done.

"You've got to be kidding me," I thought, looking at the red leash in Kaiba's hand that was, no doubt, connected to my collar.

"I still need to teach my dog obedience," Kaiba said as the limo stopped in front of the O'Connell's house. "I've allowed you some freedom, but you still have a lot to learn. You are not to talk to anyone without my permission. Do you understand?"

"Yeah," I replied.

"Pup," Kaiba said.

"Yes, Seto," I tried.

"Try again," Kaiba smirked.

"Yes, master," I forced myself to say.

"We'll have to work on that," Kaiba thought, stepping out of the limo. He pulled on the leash slightly and I followed him out, walking up to the front door.

"Yes?" Wendy asked, opening the door. "Oh, Mr. Kaiba! What a pleasant surprise!" She noticed me and her gaze hardened, her smile turning into a scowl. "What are you doing here?"

"She has been forbidden to speak," Kaiba answered for me. "She knows the consequences if she does."

"Stupid rich brat," I thought, crossing my arms. "I hope you know what you're doing."

"So, Mr. Kaiba, why are you here?" Wendy asked as she led us to her living room. "Please, sit."

"Thank you," Kaiba said, sitting on one of the white chairs. "Pup, sit." Muttering curses under my breath when I saw Wendy's smirk, I sat on the floor between Kaiba's legs, leaning back against the chair.

"You've got her trained pretty well," Wendy complimented.

"Thank you, Mrs. O'Connell," Kaiba said, smiling at her.

"Please, call me Wendy," Wendy said, smiling back.

"Give me a break," I thought, rolling my eyes. "Could she be any more fake?"

"Wendy, I just have a few questions for you about Jay?" Kaiba said.

"Go ahead, Mr. Kaiba," Wendy replied.

"How long have you and your husband been his foster parents?"

"For 12 glorious years."

"And why, if you don't mind me asking, do you think his sister is incapable of taking care of him?"

"In my opinion, Miss Hitachiin is too busy to look after a boy of Jay's age. He's had to deal with his own mother dying and his friends dying or moving away. Miss Hitachiin would never be able to understand, going through only the hardship of her mother."

"Wendy, do you know why their father was put in prison?"

"I was told for child abuse. I assumed it was something none of the family knew."

"After abusing the child from his drunken state, their father never remembered anything. The one person who remembered was the child he abused time and time again. Now, only 3 people know, myself behind one of the 3."

I looked up at Kaiba, knowing where this was heading. "This isn't gonna be good," I thought, looking back up at Wendy.

"Do you know who the child that was abused is?"

"Yes."

"May I ask who?"

"The man's own daughter."

Wendy's gaze landed on me and her smile faded. "Her? I don't believe it."

"Pup, stand up," Kaiba ordered, standing behind me. "Turn around and take off your shirt." Reluctantly, I followed his orders, tossing my shirt on the chair. "Here." He held out his coat to me. "Keep this in front of your chest." Doing what he said, I breathed in deeply as Kaiba unwrapped the bandages from my chest, showing Wendy the full extent of the abuse my back had taken.

"Oh, my," Wendy said, bringing her hand up to her mouth.

"That's horrible. But how do I know those aren't just fake?"

"Because if you touch some of them, they still bleed, you idiot!!" I screamed at her in my head as Kaiba helped bandage me up again.

"I thought you'd say that," Kaiba said as I handed him back his coat and pulled my T-shirt over my head, "so I have proof that they're real." Tucking the leash in my pocket, Kaiba took Wendy's hand and led her to a wall.

"How is this going to prove anything?" Wendy asked as I looked at them in confusion.

"I paid the bail for their father," Kaiba explained. "And after this, he has promised to stay as far away from them as possible. I put him in a room filled with alcohol and brought him here to prove that Miss Hitachiin's scars are real."

"What?!" I thought as someone knocked on the door.

"Answer it, pup," Kaiba ordered.

"It's the last time," I told myself as I opened the door.

"Well, if it isn't my worthless excuse for a daughter," my dad slurred as he walked inside. He pulled his knife out from his back pocket and tripped me, never noticing that there were others in the room.

"Dad! What are you doing?!"

I turned my head and saw Jay standing at the bottom of the stairs. "Well, my son, it's about time you learned what I've been teaching your sister for 8 years," our dad said, walking toward Jay.

"I'm not letting Jay feel this," I thought, jumping up and running in front of Jay, my back to our dad as he slashed down with his knife. I gasped when it cut through both shirt and skin, joining the many others in its place.

"Run to your room and don't look back," I ordered, clenching my teeth tightly together as I got another cut.

Jay immediately obeyed and when I heard his door slam shut, I relaxed slightly before I got another cut. Before I could get any more, though, Kaiba intervened and grabbed my dad, throwing him out the front door, taking some bandages he'd brought with him from the limo before he closed the front door.

"Young lady, I could have you arrested for speaking to my son," Wendy threatened as Kaiba helped me back to the living room, gently laying me on my stomach as he started to bandage my cuts. "I ordered that you were never to speak to him, no matter the circumstance."

"If I remember correctly, she just saved his life," Kaiba said, sitting back in his chair when he finished with my back. "If she hadn't stepped in front of Jay, he'd probably have the same problem as his sister right about now."

"So, what was that little demonstration supposed to show me?"

"To prove that Miss Hitachiin's scars are legitimate and to prove that she can take care of her brother."

"You think just because she did that, I'll give him back?"

"No, but I will pay $5,000 to let him come live with his sister again."

"As long as I can still visit him."

"Come by later with Jay and we'll work something out. Let's go, pup."

"Wait," I said, turning toward the stairs again. "I've got to do something real quick." Pulling Jay's Kuriboh card out of my pocket, I ran my hand over it to summon Coo. "Coo, this card was left with me when I gave Jay back his deck," I said, placing the card on the duel monster's head. "Bring it back to him for me, please." The Kuriboh cooed its response and nuzzled against my cheek before it floated upstairs.

"So, you're the one who taught him that," Wendy said, glaring at me as she followed me and Kaiba outside.

"No, I'm the one who's helping him control it," I replied, pulling my Blue-Eyes card out of my deck. "We were born with it." Running my hand over the card, I grinned as a fully-grown Burst appeared behind me.

"Jay will not be doing that anymore," Wendy said as Burst helped me up onto his back.

"Good luck with that," I said, wincing slightly as I slid back a bit as Burst flapped his wings. "It's probably never gonna happen. He's really attached to Coo, the Kuriboh I sent him." And with that, Burst took off flying toward Kaiba's mansion, Kaiba following below us in his limo.


	26. Kidnapping the CEO

**Wow. It's been a while since I've updated this and I'm sorry. I just have had other stuff on my mind.**

**Oh, and by the way, Flambe flamer reviewer person? If you're reading this to see if I actually ****follow**** what you're telling me to do, here's what I say to you.**

**First of all. Fuck you. You don't have the right to tell me what I should do with my story. Fuck you again. Trust me. If I knew who you were and where you lived, I'd kick your ass faster than you can say Yu-Gi-Oh!. And if you think I'm joking, think again, bitch. Have a nice day.**

"Where have you been? Joey asked as Burst landed outside the mansion.

"Kaiba took me to Jay's foster home," I replied, wincing as I slid off Burst, returning the dragon to his card. "Hang, on, though." Walking over to Kaiba, I swung my fist toward him, scowling when Kaiba caught my fist in midair.

"Pup, what are you doing?" Kaiba asked, wrapping my leash around his hand as he released my fist.

"You took my father out of jail only to get him drunk and bring him to me," I growled, stumbling forward when Kaiba jerked hard on my leash to get me inside.

"Em, are you okay?" Joey asked, following us inside.

"I just really want to kill him right now," I muttered as Kaiba jerked on my leash again.

"Pup, when Mrs. O'Connell comes back with Jay, you will not speak to them unless I give you permission," Kaiba told me, handing my leash to Joey. "Mutt, hold her and make sure she doesn't do anything to get herself in trouble."

"Bite me, rich boy," I growled as someone rang the doorbell.

"I don't want rabies, puppy," Kaiba replied as the butler opened the door, smirking as Joey held me back from attacking.

"Hello, Wendy," Kaiba said as she and Jay walked inside. "If you and Mr. Hitachiin would follow me, we can get started." He led them to a door, then took one last look back at me before closing the door behind them.

"Am I interrupting something?"

I turned my head and saw Alec standing against the wall just inside the door. "Alec!" I exclaimed. "Joey, let go!"

"What happened to you?" Alec asked, noticing my back.

"The last time I should ever see my dad," I replied, then noticed he was wearing a T-shirt over a long-sleeved shirt. "Hey, can I use your shirt for today?"

"I guess," Alec said, pulling the T-shirt over his head.

"Thanks," I said, tossing my bloody and torn one toward the stairs as I pulled Alec's red one over my head. "I just don't want to walk around in a bloody T-shirt anymore."

"How much longer do you think they'll be in there?" Joey asked as I tucked my leash into my pocket and we all sat on the stairs.

"Don't know," I replied, looking over at the door.

As if on cue, Wendy, Jay, and Kaiba walked out, Wendy's hand on Jay's shoulder. "Pup, you may speak," Kaiba said as I stood up.

"Come here, Jay," I said, grinning as Jay ran up to me and hugged me. I held out my left wrist, grinning as Jay held out his right one. "Hitachiins never leave each other alone," I said.

"Sparkx kids always stick together," Jay replied before he hugged me again.

"Pup, what is that?" Kaiba asked as Jay and I broke out of our hug.

"It's something that our parents taught us a long time ago," I explained. "They told us it meant that we would never be apart for long and would never forget each other."

"Who are these boys?" Wendy asked, glaring at both Joey and Alec.

"This is Alec," I said, gesturing at the blue-eyed boy. "He's an old friend and the one who probably knows the most about me. He's like an older brother. And this," I gestured toward the blonde, "is Joey. He's my boyfriend."

"Mr. Kaiba, do you trust these boys?" Wendy asked, looking over at Kaiba.

"I'm afraid I do," Kaiba replied as he led Wendy to the door.

"Jay, I'll come visit you as soon as I can," Wendy said before she walked out the front door.

"So she's able to visit him any time she wants?" I asked.

"Yes," Kaiba replied. "Your secretary called as well. She said that you have a meeting in 5 minutes."

"Crap," I muttered, running for the car. "See you guys later!" I called over my shoulder as I unlocked the door to my Mustang.

"Can I come with you?" Jay asked as he jumped into the passenger seat.

"He is not getting into that car," Wendy said, walking up to me. "It's not safe for him."

"Okay," I said, looking over at Jay. "Big sister or foster mother. Which would you rather pick?"

"Big sister," Jay replied, grinning as he buckled up his seatbelt.

"One more question," I said, smirking at Wendy. "A car that is driven by an old woman that goes at least 10 miles under the speed limit or a fast Mustang with a teenager that goes well above the speed limit and doesn't get in trouble for it?"

"The second option!" Jay exclaimed, practically bouncing up and down in his seat.

"See? He likes me better," I said smugly.

"There is no way I'm allowing Jay to stay in that car," Wendy said.

"Sorry, but I've got to go to a meeting in about 3 minutes," I replied, sliding into the driver's seat, sticking the keys in the ignition to start up the engine. "And since Jay will someday inherit Sparkx Industries, it's a good idea to have him see what he'll be doing. We could always take Burst or Blaze if you don't approve of my car, though." When Wendy didn't answer, I smirked and pulled away from the curb. "Later!" I called before I sped off toward Sparkx Industries.

"Sis, are you going to go to a meeting in those clothes?" Jay asked as I parked in front of Sparkx, walking up to the door.

"No, I need to change before I meet Green and Cornick," I replied, swiping my id card before I opened the door. "I keep some extra clothes in my office which is where you'll be staying until my meeting is done."

"But there's nothing to do up there," Jay complained as we rode the elevator up to the top floor.

"I've hooked up cameras in the conference rooms, so you can watch the whole thing and I'd like you to work on summoning other level 4 or lower monsters besides Coo," I told him, opening the door to my office and walking over to the closet in the bedroom. "That means you'll have to be really careful on which monsters you summon."

"I will," Jay said as I changed into a pair of black slacks and a button-up dark blue collared T-shirt, tying a black tie around my neck.

"Here," I said, handing him my deck before I grabbed a folder from my desk. "Try some of the low level monsters in that and see if you can control them."

"Aren't you gonna take Blaze or Burst with you?" Jay asked, looking though my deck as I opened the office door. "You know, just in case?"

"I'll take Burst with me," I replied, pulling it out of my deck before I walked out. "Good luck and make sure no one knows what you're doing up here. Oh, and be careful and don't do anything stupid."

"Good luck, sis," Jay called after me as I walked into the elevator, the doors closing behind me.

"I sure hope this works well," I thought, sticking my Blue-Eyes card into my shirt pocket. When the elevator doors opened, I paid no attention to what floor I was on and walked out, flipping through the folder in my hands. Closing it, I looked up and didn't still didn't realize what floor I was on and opened the door in front of me. "Hey!" I exclaimed as I bumped into someone, my folder dropping out of my hands. "Watch where you're going!" I knelt down and started to pick up the contents of the folder, cursing under my breath.

"I'm sorry, Miss Hitachiin, but you can't fire me," a very familiar voice said as I closed the folder. "I don't work here."

Looking up, I stared into the eyes of Damien. "Mastan," I growled. "What are you doing here? I thought I told you that you weren't welcome here."

"You look good like that," Damien said, as one of his guards put a hand on my shoulder to keep me from standing up. "On your knees in front of your superiors."

"You are not my superior," I growled, wincing in pain slightly as another guard put his hand on my other shoulder, pressing down slightly on my freshest cuts. "You are an annoying bastard who has nothing better to do with his time then to pester a 16-year-old girl into giving you her company."

"When I'm through with you, you'll be begging me to take your company from you," Damien promised, grinning evilly as the two guards on my shoulders pulled me up by my arms.

"I'm going to tell you what I told someone else when they pissed me off," I said, glaring up at Damien. "Bite me, rich boy."

"Only if you want me to, sweetheart," Damien smirked.

"Pervert," I muttered as Damien's guards pulled me to the elevator. "When I don't come back, you'll have someone you really don't want after you."

"Goodnight, Miss Hitachiin," Damien said as one of his guards pressed a cloth against my nose. One breath and my vision started to blur. I tried to break away, but found myself growing limp as my vision went completely black and I passed out. "Let's go before someone realizes she's gone," Damien said as one of his guards picked me up.

"Hello?"

Jay looked over at my desk as Moka buzzed my phone. With Dark Magician Girl following him, he pressed the intercom button on the phone. "H-Hello?" he asked nervously.

"Mr. Hitachiin?"

"Uh-huh. Who's this?"

"I'm Moka Akashiya, your sister's secretary. Miss Hitachiin isn't there, is she?"

"No, she left a while ago. What happened, Miss Akashiya?"

"Oh, please, Mr. Hitachiin, call me Moka."

"Then call me Jay, not Mr. Hitachiin. Now what happened to my sister?"

"Well, Jay, she never showed up for her meeting and I've had to reschedule. We haven't been able to find her since. Do you think your guardian would know where she is?"

"I-I'm not sure. Thanks for telling me, Moka."

"Please be sure to tell me when you find her, Jay."

"I-I will. Bye." Jay pushed the intercom button again to turn it off and fell back in my chair. "Where could you be, big sister?" he thought, looking up at the Dark Magician Girl floating beside him. Reaching for the phone again, he quickly dialed Kaiba's number, tapping his fingers on the desk as he waited.

"Seto Kaiba," Kaiba said as he answered.

"Seto!" Jay exclaimed. "You've got to help me!"

"What's wrong, Jay?" Kaiba asked, not sounding at all that concerned.

"It's Emilee," Jay replied. "No one can find her."

"I'll be right there," Kaiba said before hanging up.

"Please hurry, Seto," Jay thought, putting the phone down before bringing his knees up to his chest.

"Boss, she's waking up."

"Good. I've been wondering how long it would take."

When my eyes slowly opened, I looked up and saw Damien standing over me, a smirk on his face. I tried moving my arms but found them to be handcuffed behind my back. "So, Miss Hitachiin, are you ready to hand over Sparkx Industries yet?" Damien asked.

"You wish," I replied smugly. Damien turned around and started talking to some men and didn't pay any more attention to me. Moving my head to my shirt pocket, I pulled the Blue-Eyes card out with my teeth and moved back to drop it in my hands behind me.

"Ah, ah, ah," a guard behind me scolded, grabbing the card before I could touch it and putting it back in my shirt pocket. "Wouldn't want you getting away."

Finally snapping from being drugged and kidnapped, I brought my leg up to the guard's head, knocking him to the ground. I ran for the door when Damien stepped in front of it, making me curse the fact that I was still in handcuffs. "You're not going anywhere," he growled, glaring at me.

"Like I said before, bite me," I smirked, ducking as he grabbed for me. "Later!" Running as fast as I could, I ran out of the building I was in and down the street. "Stupid guard!" I thought, realizing that Burst's card was out of range and I couldn't reach it with my teeth. Seeing the park in front of me, I ran in and to the middle, trying to figure out where I was. "Let's see, if that's there, then Sparkx is that way," I thought, turning to the left. Suddenly, I saw a couple of Damien's bodyguards and I ducked behind a tree.

"Em?"

I spun around and saw Alec standing behind me. "Alec," I breathed in relief.

"What happened to you?" he asked.

"Work-related, hard to explain," I replied, seeing the two guards leaving. "But I need to get back to Sparkx Industries before Jay comes looking for me."

"First, let me help," Alec said, spinning me around. He fiddled with the handcuffs for a few seconds before throwing them into the bushes, a triumphant grin on his face.

"Thanks, Alec," I said, hugging him.

"There she is!"

I turned and saw a guard running toward me, two others right behind him. "Time to go," I said, running toward Sparkx. "Alec, follow me!"

"Why are they after you?" Alec asked as we ran.

"Let's just say someone really wants my company," I replied, quickly sliding my id card to gain entrance to the back of Sparkx Industries. Slamming the door shut behind us, we flew up the stairs to the top floor, bursting into my office.

"Big sister!" Jay cried, tackling me to the ground as Alec closed the door. "Big sister, you're safe!"

"And now I'm in pain," I said as Jay got up off me.

"Pup, where were you?" Kaiba asked, walking over to me as I stood up. "Your brother called me and told me that you were missing."

"Well, blame Damien Mastan," I replied, walking over to the black couch in the office before completely collapsing on it. "He owns Flare Corp. and he's been after Sparkx since my parents started this company. He'll do anything to get it and take extremely drastic measures if necessary."

"Are you okay?" Jay asked, leaning over me from the back of the couch.

"Yeah, just a little tired from running here from who-knows-where in handcuffs," I replied, looking up at him. "I'm probably gonna stay here tonight, thought. I really don't feel like moving."

"Can I stay with you?" Jay asked.

"Sure you can, Jay," I replied, smiling at him. "Go and get ready for bed."

"I'll come and get you tomorrow, pup," Kaiba said, taking Alec's arm as he exited the office.

"Later," I said, getting up off the couch before I walked into the bedroom. Quickly stripping down to my boxers and undershirt, I climbed into bed, kissing Jay on his forehead before we both fell asleep.


	27. New Foster Parents

**BTW: Most of the rest of the chapters for this will be pretty long because I'm too lazy to split them up. So they're kinda long. Sorry 'bout that.**

"Miss Hitachiin?"

I opened my eyes and rolled out of bed and over to my desk where I'm pretty sure Moka had been buzzing me for the past 10 minutes or so. "Yes?" I yawned, pressing the talk button on the phone.

"Miss Hitachiin, a Mr. Arnez is here waiting for the reports you were going over. He says that he works on the 6th floor as the head mechanic," Moka said.

"I'll be right down," I said, ending the call. Turning around, I walked back into the bedroom and pulled on a pair of jeans and a black T-shirt, leaving a note for Jay as I grabbed a few papers from my desk and walked to the elevator. I pulled my sneakers on as the elevator started moving, holding the reports between my teeth.

"Miss Hitachiin?" someone asked when the elevator door opened.

"Yeah?" I asked, standing up straight and taking the reports out of my mouth. "Oh! Mr. Arnez!"

"Did you look over the reports?" Ross Arnez asked as I walked with him down the hall.

"Yeah, they looked pretty good," I replied, handing them to him. "Can I see how the new stuff is going?"

"I don't know, can you?" Ross asked back, grinning down at me.

"May I?" I asked again, smiling innocently.

"There you go," Ross grinned. "Even though you're now the permanent CEO of this company, all of us are not going to go against your parent's wishes to teach you to be a proper young lady."

"Good luck with that," I smirked, walking with him into Sparkx's main testing area. "It's not gonna be easy."

"Good morning, Miss Hitachiin," 21-year-old Night Gallows, one of the mechanics, greeted as I walked up to a couch-sized capsule-like machine in the middle of the room.

"So what's wrong with this one?" I asked, running a finger over the front. "And explain to me what it does again."

"Emilee…" Ross said, looking down at me.

"Fine, please explain what it does," I muttered, rolling my eyes. "You know, sometimes I wish mom and dad didn't trust you with being the main person trying to get me to behave."

"Well, Miss Hitachiin," Night explained. "This is the project that we started a few months ago under your orders. It was designed to place the user directly into the video game of his or her choice. No matter what happens, the user cannot be harmed or killed; all physical damage will only cause a small shock or a tingle of some sort."

"So, what's wrong with it?" I asked, looking over at the 25-year-old.

"Well," Night continued. "We've had it tested with at least 4 of our volunteer beta testers and each of them has been physically harmed, one was actually killed. We've run all the maintenance tests required and still haven't been able to track down the problem."

"What game have you been using?" I asked, walking around the machine.

"We've been using a simple shooting game to test the physical parameters of the characters and the compatibility of the users."

"Let me see some tools," I ordered, sliding under the machine. Grabbing the tool belt Ross handed me, I unscrewed the main panel and moved my hands over the intercrossing wires, grabbing the one that I needed. "Here's your problem," I said, connecting the few wires that were mismatched. "You had some of the game wires crossed with the controls that controlled how much damage is administered to the user. There. That should do it." Sliding back out, I grabbed Ross's hand and stood up, wiping the grease on my hands onto my pants. "Who's the next beta tester?" I asked.

"Nate Tenjo," Ross replied, checking a name off the clipboard. "Tenjo."

A young man of about 21 walked up behind Ross, headphones stuck in his ears. "Looks promising," I said, looking Nate up and down. When the boy didn't respond, I snapped my fingers in front of his face.

"What?" he asked, pulling the headphones out. "Wow, you're cute. Wanna hit a bar later?"

"Okay, first," I said, crossing my arms. "I have a boyfriend. Second, I'm 16."

"An arcade, then?" Nate asked.

"Dude, stop trying," I replied. "Please take all electronic and/or metal objects and leave them on the table."

"Who died and made you queen?" Nate asked as he did as he was told.

"My mom," I smirked. "And technically, I'm just the owner and CEO of this company."

"Argue any more and we'll force you into a skirt for 2 days," Ross threatened.

"Fine, then just get in the damn machine," I growled, crossing my arms.

"I'd listen to her if I were you," Night said. "She's already tired and had to fix this."

"Whatever, dude," Nate said, shrugging his jean jacket off. He slipped off his shoes and stepped into the capsule, the door sliding shut behind him. I slipped on a headset and looked over at the screen above the machine.

"Okay, Nate," I said into the microphone as the machine started up. "What you'll be playing is a simple shooting game. Basically, you need to shoot all the enemies to get to and defeat the boss. By the way, try not to get shot during this because there is a chance you could get killed."

"Sweet," Nate said, his character coming to life on the screen.

"Okay," I said, putting a hand over the mic, "are we getting our volunteers from bars and suicide hotlines now?"

"He applied and was willing," Night replied. "This means that if he dies, though, we'll have his consent and probably won't get a lawsuit against us."

"Score!" I said sarcastically, giving him a thumbs-up. Rolling my eyes, I turned back to the screen and took my hand away from the microphone. "Okay, Nate, you're coming up on the final level," I said. "You have about 3 rounds left, so shoot wisely."

"Sis, what are you doing?"

I tore my eyes away from the screen and saw Jay standing behind me, his arms wrapped tightly around a Blue-Eyes White Dragon plushie he'd found in the bedroom. "Hey, Jay," I said, holding my arms out to him. "When did you get up?"

"A couple minutes ago," Jay replied, rubbing the sleep from his eyes. "Can I watch what you're doing?"

Looking back at the screen, I saw that Nate had half a round left and the boss wasn't even close to dying yet. "Oh, this isn't good," I thought, looking down at Jay. "Jay, who don't you go play with Blaze and Burst," I said, gently pushing him toward the door. "I'm sure they're lonely. I'll meet up with you later. Feel free to call Seto to come get you if you want."

"Okay, bye, sis," Jay said, walking out the door again.

"Game over," Night said, drawing my attention to the screen again.

"Okay, I said, pulling my headset around my neck. "Is he still breathing? Still have all his vital organs and blood?"

"Yes and yes," Night replied. "Looks like you fixed the problem."

"Keep testing and tell me if anything goes wrong," I said, setting the headset on the table. "Later."

"Where do you think you're going?" Ross asked as I walked into the elevator, heading up to my office.

"I have to get my little brother, then I'm going home," I replied, crossing my arms. "Why? Is there something I have to do?"

"No, but I was hoping you'd stay for a little bit longer," Ross said as the elevator doors slid open again. "Since I was told you haven't been going to school lately, I've decided that we, we being the company, are going to be your new school."

"You're kidding, right?" I asked. "Please tell me you're not serious."

"Sorry, kid, but your parents told us to take care of you and you brother," Ross replied. "And since Jay goes to your old school, we won't need to worry about him yet."

Walking into my office, I was immediately confronted with the two social workers who, I'm sure, just lived to torture me. "Why the hell are you two always near me?" I asked, my hands on my hips.

"Miss Hitachiin," Jameson said, motioning to a couple that looked about 28 to 30. "This is Dani and Angel Yagami. They came to us wanting to adopt a girl like you."

"What do you mean 'like me'?" I demanded.

"Independent, protective, smart, strong, spirited," Hart replied.

"But I already have a guardian," I insisted. "Seto's my guardian. And if not, Sparkx would adopt me since they've treated me like family for pretty much ever."

"Yes, but we checked up on Mr. Kaiba and found that he is a few days away from becoming 18 years of age," Jameson said. "We've decided that your brother may stay with him if you are adopted by the Yagimis and when Mr. Kaiba officially becomes 18, you may choose which family to stay with."

"At least let me tell Jay I've got to go for a few days," I said.

"Make it quick," Hart agreed.

All 5 adults, including Ross, followed me up to the roof and found Jay running from a life-size Burst.

"Aren't you going to help him?" Dani asked, concern in her voice.

"Nah," I replied. "Burst wouldn't hurt us." Hearing my voice, Burst stopped and looked at me. "Hey, boy," I said, patting his head.

"Sis, what's going on?" Jay asked, looking me straight in the eyes as I knelt in front of him.

"Jay, I'm gonna have to leave for a few days," I replied. "You're gonna stay with Seto and be good for him please. I'll be back soon."

"B-But…I don't want you to go," Jay said, his eyes growing teary.

"Hitachiins never leave each other alone," I said, holding up my band.

"S-Sparkx kids stick together," Jay sniffed before hugging my tightly.

"I'll see you later and you can always call me," I said, standing up.

"Wait!" I turned and saw Jay holding out my deck and belts.

"Thanks, little bro," I grinned, kissing the top of his head. Slipping my belts through my jeans, I sent Burst back to his card and stuck my deck in its case. Following Hart and Jameson, I left Jay on the roof, Ross staying behind to comfort him. "So, where do you guys live?" I asked as we walked back into my office.

"We live about 20 minutes away from here," Dani replied as her husband wrapped an arm around her waist to pull her closer.

"Well, at least I'll be able to walk here or drive here," I said, walking into the elevator.

"Wh-What do you mean?" Dani asked.

"Well, I still have to work here and I'm pretty sure Ross up there is making this company my school as well," I replied.

"But, you can't possibly be able to drive yet," Angel said as I walked out of the elevator and up to Moka's desk.

"I'm 16," I said, grabbing the folders that Moka handed me. Walking outside, I started to get into my Mustang when Dani grabbed my arm.

"What do you think you're doing?" she asked.

"Um, getting into my car," I replied, looking at her like she was crazy.

"I don't think so," Dani said.

"Yeah, right," I said, pulling my arm out of her grip. "This car is me and my friend's baby. I fixed it and paid for half of it. Hell, I'm able to drive it as fast as I want as long as I don't run into anything."

"Not while we're your foster parents," Angel said. "This car will be going back to your friend."

"Well, I'll have to drive it to his house, then," I said, sliding in the driver's seat. "You can come with, if you want."

Looking at each other, Angel got into the passenger seat of the Mustang, buckling his seatbelt as I started the engine. "Let's go," I grinned, taking off down the street toward Alec's house.

Thanks to the speed that I was driving, we got to Alec's house in about 3 minutes. "New record," I mumbled, taking the keys out of the ignition as I slid out of the car and walked up to Alec's front door. Standing up on my tiptoes, I grabbed the key on the top of the doorframe, unlocking the front door before setting it back in its hiding place. "Alec!" I called as I walked in, Angel staying quite a ways behind me. "Al! You here?"

"Em!" Alec exclaimed, walking down the stairs. "What are you doing here?"

"You want the whole thing or the shortened version?" I asked, walking with him up to his room. "Cause I also need a jacket please."

"For right now, shortened version because I really want to know who he is," Alec replied, jerking his head back at Angel.

"Well, Seto's not really 18 for a few more days," I explained, looking through his closet. "So, the two social workers who pretty much hate me are letting him and his wife adopt me until Seto turns 18. Then, I can choose who to stay with until I turn 18 and can take care of Jay on my own in my parent's house which, if I remember right, is across the street or next to Seto's house. Or, if I beg Seto enough, he'll buy us a house near yours. Hey, can I take this for now?"

"Sure," Alec replied as I slipped on a black jean jacket that was faded in a few places. "Anything else you need me to know?"

"Um, yeah," I said, handing him my car keys and the keys to his house that I completely forgot I had. "Apparently, I'm not allowed to drive our car, so you'll need to keep it."

"You wanna borrow my board?" Alec asked, picking up the skateboard on his bed. "Since, you know, yours is at Kaiba's?"

"Thanks, Alec," I said, hugging him. "I'll see you tomorrow. Oh, and please go to school tomorrow for me and tell Joey what happened and tell him I'll see him as soon as I can."

"Sure thing," Alec replied as I walked downstairs, his skateboard under my arm. "See ya later, girl."

"You are the best," I said, hugging him again before I headed out with Angel.

"So who was that?" Angel asked as we walked down the street to his house.

"My best friend," I replied, running my hand through my bangs. "He's kinda like my brother since I've known him for, like, ever."

"There's my baby!" Dani exclaimed as we walked up to their house, running toward me.

"I swear, if this is what's going to happen all week, I'm running away," I thought as she hugged me tightly.

"What's this?" Dani asked, looking down at Alec's skateboard.

"My best friend's skateboard," I replied. "Since I apparently can't drive the Mustang, he's lending me his board since mine is at Seto's. I'm gonna be using it to get to and from work."

"You're still going to be working?" Angel asked as he took my arm and led me upstairs.

"Yeah," I replied. "We're testing new designs for computers and video games and they need me to overlook and fix them if necessary."

"Well, this is your room, sweetie," Dani said, opening a door.

"Oh…my…god…" I thought, my jaw dropping practically to the floor. It was a good-sized room with one little tiny problem. It was PINK! Everywhere I looked, I saw pink. Pink walls, bed, dresser, closet, everything. Opening the closet, I'm pretty sure my jaw went through the floor. Again, it was pink everywhere I looked and there was another problem I couldn't overlook. There were no pants, there were no T-shirts, there were no tennis shoes or boots, all there was were pink polo shirts and sweaters with pink skirts and dresses, pink high-heels and sandals on the floor under them.

"We'll see you tomorrow, sweetie," Dani said, kissing my cheek before she and her husband walked out of my room, closing the door behind them.

"Eew," I thought, using the sleeve of Alec's jacket to wipe my cheek. "That was disgusting. And who do these people think I am? Do I look like a girl who's only interest is pink things? Do I look like a girly-girl? Do I make that impression on people?" Shaking my head, I ran my hands through my hair before I kicked off my shoes and shrugged off Alec's jacket, sitting on the bed as I flipped through the folders in my hands.

"How many projects was Aono a part of?" I asked myself out loud. I got off my bed and spread out all the reports on the stupid pink carpet. "I mean, he was on the holographic computer thing and the video game thing I fixed. Right now, I'm just glad he wasn't working on the duel monsters project I started two years ago." Trying not to think about it anymore, I stacked all the reports and set them on my jacket, stripping down to my boxers and undershirt before I reluctantly climbed into bed and fell asleep.


	28. Hypnotizing and Secrets

Opening my eyes, I remembered where I was and groaned as I got out of bed. I saw a pink robe on the back of my door but ignored it as I walked downstairs for some breakfast.

"Honey?" Dani asked as I started to make a piece of toast. "What are you wearing?"

"What I slept in," I replied, choosing to avoid her gaze, "my underwear. And as soon as my toast finishes, I'm gonna change and head down to Sparkx. Someone has to be fired today and I just love doing it."

"Dear, I've left your clothes on your bed," Dani said as I grabbed my finished toast and headed back upstairs.

"She calls me some pet name again and I'm gonna have to kill her," I thought, closing the door to my room behind me. "I only tolerate 'pup' because I've gotten used to it. And she has got to be kidding me." On my bed was a pink polo shirt, a pink miniskirt, and a pair of pink high-heeled sandals. "So glad I have clothes in my office," I thought, taking a deep breath as I pulled on the shirt and skirt. "But there is no way I'm wearing those shoes."

Swallowing the last piece of my toast, I pulled on the black sneakers I'd worn the night before and grabbed Alec's jean jacket, skateboard and the reports on my floor as I headed downstairs. "Where are you going?" Angel asked as I reached for the front door.

"Sparkx," I replied, opening the door.

"But, sweetheart," Dani said, walking up behind her husband, "why aren't you wearing the outfit I laid out for you?"

"Because I'm not 5," I thought. "I'm wearing the skirt and shirt," I said.

"That may be, but the shoes and jacket don't go," Dani insisted. "And what's with the collar around your neck? Do you ever take it off?"

"I'm not sure I can," I replied, setting Alec's board on the sidewalk. "Seto put it on and I think he's the only one who can take it off. Later!"

Before I could get asked anything else, I took off down the street. "This'll be a challenge," I thought. "I've never skateboarded in a skirt before. This might be just a bit of fun." Grinning, I sped up and before I knew it, I was at Sparkx Industries.

"Good morning, Miss Hitachiin," Moka said, putting a hand over her mouth as I walked in to cover her grin.

"Laugh and you're fired," I growled, kicking up Alec's skateboard into my hands. "In fact, if anyone laughs or says anything about this, they're fired."

"Yes, Miss Hitachiin," Moka said as I walked into the elevator, pushing the button for the top floor. One by one, she pushed the intercom button for each floor and warned the employees of my current condition and attitude.

"This is gonna be a long few days," I muttered, walking into my office. I headed straight for the closet in my bedroom and tore off the skirt and polo I was wearing and tossed them in a corner, flicking through the clothes hanging in the closet. Pulling a white T-shirt and a pair of black jeans, I buttoned up a black collared T-shirt over my white one and tied a gold tie around my neck. Pulling on a pair of black combat boots, I pulled my jeans over them and walked out of my office, my reports under my arm as I pushed the button for the elevator.

"Ah, Miss Hitachiin, so glad you're here," Night said as I walked into the main testing area.

"How's it working out?" I asked, scrolling my finger down a clipboard he handed to me.

"So far, we've had no casualties and no injuries," Night replied. "But, we do have one small problem."

"Please tell me it has nothing to do with the actual machine," I said, looking over at him.

"No, it's one of the volunteers," he replied, pointing to a name on the clipboard. "22-year-old Roger Maroon. We told him what would happen if he got shot, you know, the shock, and said it was fine. Got shot once and refused to finish the game. Said he demanded to speak to the CEO of this company."

"Where is he?" I asked, handing Night back his clipboard. Following Night's finger, I saw the 22-year-old brunette sitting in the room next door. "I'll be back in no less then 10 minutes," I promised, ready to make the volunteer regret he'd ever wanted to talk to me.

"So, Mr. Maroon, what could possibly be wrong with the game?" I asked, slamming the door shut behind me as I walked up to him.

"Excuse me, who are you?" Roger asked, leaning back in his chair. "I thought I asked to talk to the CEO of this company."

"Yeah, well you're talking to the pissed off CEO who really wants to know why the hell you aren't happy," I growled, glaring at him.

"You can't possibly be the CEO of Sparkx Industries," Roger scoffed, looking me up and down. "You're way too young for that."

"You know how many guys I've close to killed for thinking that?" I asked, crossing my arms. "Do not test me."

"Miss Hitachiin," Night said, walking into the room. "You might need this." He handed me a couple sheets of paper, then turned to Roger. "By the way," he said, "you might want to listen to her. When she's pissed, you really don't want to mess with her."

"Night, leave before I fire you," I threatened, scanning the papers he'd handed me that turned out to be Roger's contract for being a beta tester.

"I'll need those back when you're done," Night said before he left the room, going back out to watch with Ross from the sidelines.

"So, tell me again what was wrong?" I asked, looking back at Roger.

"I was told that it wouldn't hurt if I was shot during the test," Roger said. "And when I did, it was painful enough for me that I refused to finish the testing."

"Well, according to your contract, you said that you had agreed to all the terms and conditions of the beta testing which included some feelings of necessary pain," I clarified. "And besides, part of being a beta testing volunteer means that you are expecting to go through some minor problems with the programming. So, since you signed a contract, you have nothing against us. Good day, sir. Oh, and before I forget, if you didn't want to get shocked, then you should really practice your aiming." With Roger Maroon still staring after me, I joined Night and Ross outside the room I was in, handing Night Roger's contract.

"Emilee, you have a call," Ross said, handing me my headset.

"I'll be in my office," I said as I slipped on the headset and walked out to the elevator. "Call me if anything else goes wrong." I pressed a button on the side of the headset and listened.

"Pup, where are you?" I heard Kaiba ask.

"Sparkx," I replied, riding the elevator up to the top floor. "Why? Didn't Jay tell you why I didn't come back?"

"He did which is why I'm waiting for you in your office," Kaiba said.

I froze as I reached for the handle to my office door. "Y-You are?" I gulped.

"Please come join me," Kaiba said before he hung up.

Slipping my headset around my neck, I took in a deep breath before I walked into my office and found Kaiba leaning back in my chair. "What are you doing here, Seto?" I asked, walking up to him as I set my headset on a table near the door.

"Pup, come here," Kaiba ordered, standing up. Following his order, I stood in front of him and flinched slightly as he reached up to my neck. He unlocked my collar and set it in his coat pocket.

"Why did you take it off?" I asked curiously, looking up at him. "Are you finally done trying to teach me obedience?"

"No," Kaiba replied. "It was fading a little bit and I decided that you needed a new collar. I'll have it for you tomorrow and until then, I'll be staying with you for the rest of today."

"Well, I don't have much to do today," I said walking with him to the stairs, heading down to the 23rd floor. "I just have to test out this new project since I didn't have time to get any beta testers. Then I have to see Ross Yuki so he can try to turn this company into my new school."

"What project are you testing?" Kaiba asked as we walked off the stage and into a testing lab. It was completely white all around and the only things in it were a computer screen on the wall, a TV screen on a different wall, and a white podium with a pair of computerized goggles and a computerized gun on it.

"Let's just say it's a portable and much smaller version of something that's still in progress downstairs," I replied, looking back at him as I walked up to the podium. Setting the goggles on top of my head, I walked back over to the computer screen and pressed my palm against the bottom right corner. "No one can use this without my authorization," I explained when I saw Kaiba's questioning look.

"Does anyone know you're doing this?" Kaiba asked as I pressed a few buttons on the screen, setting the computer for what I wanted to do.

"I think I told Night because I know I can trust him not to tell Ross," I replied, walking back over to the podium. "I know if Ross finds out, he'll kill me." Picking up the gun still setting on the podium, I weighed it in my hands before I aimlessly pointed it at Kaiba. "Don't worry," I smirked when I saw him flinch. "It's a gun meant for video games that I modified. It can't shoot anything no matter what I do."

"What are you doing, pup?" Kaiba thought as the computer powered up the TV screen.

"I sure hope this works," I thought, sliding the goggles down over my eyes. "This is my first test since I finished finding all the bugs and problems in the programming." Taking a deep breath, I looked over at the screen and held up the gun, flinching slightly as the computer scanned me for the character that materialized on the screen. The goggles made it seem like I really was in the game and the gun was now in my character's hands. The goggles scanned my thoughts as my character started walking. As soon as people started appearing, I instinctively turned toward them, shooting if I needed to.

"She's doing well," Kaiba thought as he watched my character move.

"Something's not right," I thought as I continued playing. "I should have finished the test by now." Suddenly, the screen sparked and started flicking.

"Pup!" Kaiba exclaimed, making a move to walk toward me. Before he could do anything, the game sparked once more and went black. Something was sent through the goggles and I collapsed, the gun falling out of my hand. "Pup, are you okay?" Kaiba asked, tearing off the goggles as he sat me up against him.

_Seto Kaiba's POV_

Emilee's eyes opened and she looked up curiously at me, not saying anything. "Pup?" I asked. "Pup, say something."

"What happened?" she asked innocently.

"Stand up," I ordered, standing up myself.

Emilee stood up obediently and looked up at me for her next order. "What's wrong with my puppy?" I thought. Then I remembered the game that went haywire. "There was a case of something like that happening a year ago at KaibaCorp. The doctor who examined the man caught in it explained that he was mildly hypnotized by the lights and obeyed the first person who talked to him."

"Puppy, I want you to listen to my voice," I said, keeping my voice steady and quiet as I locked eyes with her. "My voice is the only thing you'll be able to follow. Do you understand?"

My puppy slowly nodded, her eyes slightly glazing over. "When you hear my voice, you will only wish to obey me," I continued. "You'll only want to please me. Do you understand?" Emilee nodded again, her hands sliding down into her pockets. "Pup, tell me that you understand your master."

"I understand my master," she said, still looking up at me with slightly glazed eyes.

"Go up to your office and wait for me," I ordered, smirking slightly as my puppy turned for the door and walked out the door, heading up the stairs. "I wonder how long this will last," I thought, following her after a few minutes. "This is very useful for teaching her obedience."

_Emilee's POV_

I looked up from the couch when I heard the door open. Kaiba stepped into my office and closed the door behind him, walking up to me. "Stand up," he ordered in the same steady and quiet voice he'd used before, his eyes never leaving mine. Obediently standing up, I watched as Kaiba looked me up and down. "Do you own any skirts?" he asked. "Besides the one Jay and Mokuba bought for you?"

"I have one that my foster parents made me wear here this morning," I replied. "But it's pink."

"Change into it and take off your black shirt and tie," Kaiba said, sitting down on the couch as I walked into the bedroom. A few minutes later, I walked back out in my white T-shirt, pink miniskirt, and black combat boots. "Come here," he ordered, smirking slightly as I walked up to him. "Don't move."

I followed Kaiba's order as he stood up and walked closer to me. I looked innocently up at him as he leaned down slightly and closed the gap between us. Again, he pulled away after a few seconds, but this time he didn't leave. He kissed me again, but this time it was longer and he took a step back when he was done.

"Pup, when I leave this office, you will have no memory of me being here," Kaiba said, turning for the door. "But when you hear this voice again, you'll be right back in the state you're in now. You'll want to obey and please the person it belongs to."

"Yes, master," I replied, watching as he left.

"Wow," I said, shaking my head. "That was weird." Looking down at my outfit, I immediately ran into my bedroom. "How the hell did I get into these clothes? All I remember is my game malfunctioning and then I don't remember anything else. I'll ask Night about it later. See if he had anything to do with it."

I reached for my shirt, tie, and pants when I saw a stack of clothes with a note saying 'School Uniform' on top. "They're probably from Ross," I thought, unfolding the clothes. "Oh, well. Might as well make him happy." Quickly changing, I looked at myself in the mirror, deciding that it wasn't that bad. The uniform Ross picked out was a short-sleeved button-down black collared shirt, the Sparkx symbol on the breast pocket. There were also black slacks and black sneakers, a thick black belt to hold the pants up. I decided to leave my usual belts and deck on the bed, deciding at the last minute to slip my Blue-Eyes White Dragon and my Red-Eyes Black Dragon cards in my shirt pocket.

When I got down to where Ross wanted me, I walked into a room and saw him standing in front of a desk, a few more men behind him that I recognized to be engineers and mechanics. "Nice of you to join us, Emilee," Ross said as I sat down.

"Sorry, but I had something to do," I apologized, looking up at him. "So, what'll I be doing?"

"I've talked with the senior officers for each floor and we've made out a schedule for you," Ross replied, handing me a piece of paper. "And during this, you will not be allowed to fire anyone."

"Well, that takes all the fun out of this," I muttered, scanning the paper in my hands.

"First, you'll have Mechanics with Night," Ross explained. "I'm just gonna go in order from there. Then Reports with Jessie Kurama. Following that will be Business and Meeting Skills with Tom Kazuma and then Engineering with Rashel Belkov. Finally, you'll have Study Hall or Duel Monsters Training with Quinn Lawliet."

"Explain to me the first four, please," I asked, looking up at Ross.

"In Mechanics," Ross explained, "you'll be looking over new products and fixing them if necessary. In Reports, you'll be filing, reading, signing, and rechecking reports and contracts. Business and Meeting Skills is obvious, as is Study Hall and Duel Monsters Training. Lastly, in Engineering, you'll be building the new projects we have lined up and going over different plans."

"Sounds easy enough," I said, leaning back in my desk. "Anything else?"

"Yes, while in Study Hall, you'll be hiring new beta testers," Ross replied. "And while 'school' is in session, what you're wearing is your uniform. For right now, thought, class is dismissed."

"Sweet," I grinned, standing up. "See ya tomorrow." I walked out the door and headed down to the ground level, grabbing Alec's skateboard as I walked out. I tossed the board on the ground and hopped on, riding down the street to Alec's house.

When I got to his house, I quickly grabbed the spare key and unlocked the door, walking in. I heard music coming from somewhere and followed the sound, finding Alec dancing by himself in his kitchen to the radio that his I-pod was connected to. "What are you doing?" I asked, giggling as I saw him.

"E-Em!" Alec exclaimed, blushing slightly as he turned to face me. "W-What are you doing here?"

"I came here to see Alec," I replied, still grinning to hold back laughter. "Have you seen him?"

"Very funny," Alec said, using a remote in his back pocket to turn the music down slightly. The timer suddenly went off and Alec grabbed a towel as he opened the oven and pulled out a tray of cookies, setting them on the stove. "While those cool," he said, setting the towel on the counter as he tossed me the remote for the radio, "would you like to dance?"

"I'd love to," I replied, taking his hand. "But I get to pick the song and you have to help me sing it."

"Deal," Alec replied, grinning as I moved through his music library, stopping on one of my favorite songs. "What are we listening to, my song and dance partner?"

"Swing Swing by the All-American Rejects," I replied, grinning as the song started up, the music playing throughout the house thanks to the speakers set up in all the rooms. "Remember, this was the first song we danced to together at your house."

"Of course I do," Alec replied, taking my hands as we started dancing. "Let's just hope I can still remember the lyrics."

"I'll help," I grinned. "Days swiftly come and go, I'm dreaming of her. She's seeing other guys, emotions they stir. The sun is gone, the nights are long. And I am left while the tears fall."

"Did you think that I would cry on the phone?" Alec started singing with me, grinning along with me. "Do you know what it feels like being alone? I'll find someone new."

"Swing, swing, swing from the tangles of," we sang together. "My heart is crushed by a former love. Can you help me find a way to carry on again?"

When the song was finally done, we turned down the volume again and each picked up a cookie. "So, what's going on with you?" I asked through a mouthful of cookie as we both hopped up on the kitchen counter. "How's your job at KaibaCorp goin'?"

"Fine, I guess," Alec replied, leaning back against a cabinet. "How's life with your foster parents?"

"Horrible," I said, looking over at him. "The room they gave me is completely pink and they expect me to wear sandals, high-heels, skirts, and all this pink, frilly, girly stuff. It was horrible!"

"You know, you look pretty cute in pink skirts," Alec told me, sliding an arm around my shoulders. "I haven't seen you in one in several months. Can you wear one just for me?"

"Nice try," I smirked. "You're not gonna get that wish unless you force me into a skirt when I'm tired or close to passing out."

"So I just have to wait until you have to do paperwork for about 8 hours?" Alec asked, grinning.

"Don't make me leave," I threatened, sliding down the counter and away from his arm. "Besides, I've got better things to do then talk to you."

"Doubt it," Alec said. "Hey, since it doesn't seem like you want to stay at your foster parent's house tonight, wanna stay here for tonight?"

"Can I?" I asked hopefully.

"On one condition," Alec smirked. "You have to beg for it."

"Real beg or fake beg?" I asked, sliding off the counter.

"Real beg," Alec replied smugly, crossing his arms.

Sighing, I knelt down and put my hands on his legs, looking innocently up at him. "Please let me stay here," I pouted, still looking up at him with my best wide, innocent-looking eyes. "Please, Alec."

"Yes, my little slave," Alec teased, patting me on the head. "Your master shall allow you to sleep under his roof tonight."

"You're horrible," I said, standing up as I pulled the remote for the radio out of my back pocket. "And that's why we're listening to songs that I like that I know you have in your music library. Maybe we'll listen to songs that describe you. Songs like Time to Dance or American Idiot."

"Hey!" Alec argued. "If there's any song for me, it'll be Sexy Boy. That totally describes me."

"S-Sure," I managed to get out though my laughter. "Y-You know, I'm the only girl who's ever held a conversation with you that lasted more than 10 minutes."

"Hey! I held one with that girl Amy from middle school for at least 25 minutes!"

"Yeah, and she never talked to you again. Besides, I'm the only girl who's ever been to your house and/or stayed over."

"But—"

"Your female family members don't count."

"Fine."

Smirking, I pressed a button on the radio remote and turned away from Alec as Sour Cherry started playing. I started twirling as I danced my way into Alec's living room. "Get back here!" Alec called after me as he started to chase me. "I'm not through with you yet!"

"Alec!" I shrieked as he grabbed the collar of my uniform shirt. "Let go!"

"Not until you promise to kiss me," Alec teased, leaning toward the back of my neck.

"Never!" I replied as quickly got out of my shirt, thankful that I had a white T-shirt on underneath it.

"Get back here!" Alec called as he started to chase me around the ground level of his house.

"You'll have to catch me first!" I called over my shoulder as I ran outside. Seeing that the grass was wet, I grinned. I knew well enough that when Alec ran on wet grass, he more often than not slipped and fell on his face. Sliding to a stop at the edge of his front lawn, I just watched as he took one step on the wet grass and fell flat on his face.

"You planned this, didn't you?" Alec asked, spitting out a mouthful of grass as he propped himself up on his elbows and glared at me.

"Well, not really, but it was a good plan that I made up in the last 5 seconds," I replied, choking back laughter. "I know you probably hate it, but I'm loving it."

"You are so dead," Alec said, scrambling to his feet. He used the fact that I was struggling not to laugh and pulled my feet out from under me. "Ha!" he smirked, straddling my hips as he pinned my wrists above my head.

"Alec! Get off!" I struggled to get the green-eyed teenager off me when we both heard someone walked up behind us.

"Pup, what are you doing?" I moved my head to the side slightly and saw Kaiba standing behind us, his arms crossed.

"Hey, Seto," I said. "What are you doing here?"

"I came to give you this," Kaiba replied, pulling a collar out of his coat pocket. "It was delivered earlier than I thought."

"Okay, just a sec, then," I said, turning my attention back to Alec. "Get off or I'm not staying over tonight."

Alec glared at me, but got up and held out a hand as he helped me stand up. I walked up in front of Kaiba and turned around. "Stand still," Kaiba ordered, noticing that I was shifting my weight from foot to foot. Lifting my hair with one hand, he used his other hand to wrap the collar around my neck, locking it in place.

"Alec," I asked, holding out a hand.

Alec nodded and ran into the house, coming back out a few minutes later with a mirror. Holding it up to my neck, I saw that my new collar was black with red edges and had two tags instead of one. The first was a simple oval shaped tag with the KaibaCorp crest on the front, the Sparkx Industries one on the back. The second tag was a small bone with a couple lines of words on the front and the back that I couldn't make out very well through a mirror since they were backwards. "Alec, what does this say?" I asked, pushing the mirror down.

"Emilee Hitachiin. Answers to Puppy. Owner-Seto Kaiba," Alec read, then turned the tag over. "If lost, please return to KaibaCorp or call (509)752-2677."

"Seto!" I whined, looking up at him.

"You seem to get yourself into trouble often," Kaiba explained. "This is so you can't be lost at any time."

"That's it," I said, throwing my arms up in the air. "I'm going inside. Alec, feel free to join me at any time."

"Hey, Kaiba?" Alec asked as I closed the front door behind me. "Can you call her foster parents? I'm not sure they know where she is right now and she's staying over here tonight."

"What's wrong with her foster parents?" Kaiba asked as Alec turned for the door.

"She said that they gave her all this pink stuff and make her wear skirts and high-heels," Alec replied. "I know very well by now that Em is anything but a girly-girl. I'm not even sure she's a girl sometimes."

Suddenly, a pillow flew out of nowhere and nailed Alec in the face. Looking up, Alec saw me leaning out his room window from the 2nd floor, a huge grin on my face. "Alec, get your butt up here!" I yelled at him. "Someone's on the phone for you!"

"Gotta go," Alec said, shrugging. "See ya later, Kaiba." Picking up the pillow, he ran back inside and up to his room. Grabbing the phone from my outstretched hand, he started talking as I pulled out a drawer and grabbed one of his T-shirts. Since Alec was still talking on the phone, I slipped off my shoes, shirt, and pants, slipping Alec's T-shirt over my head. It went half-way down the top of my legs and it really helped that I was still wearing boxers.

"So who was it?" I asked as Alec set the phone down on the dresser.

"My mom," Alec replied, stripping off his shirts and pants before he slipped on a pair of baggy black sweats. "She wanted to know if I was fine that she and dad were gonna be gone for at least 10 or so more years."

"Wow," I whistled, my hands on my hips. "They must really trust you."

"Well, I'm their only child, so they feel that they must give me their full trust," Alec said, shrugging. "Anyway, come on, we'd better get to bed if you have to go to work tomorrow."

"So do you," I said. "I'm gonna go downstairs and sleep on the couch, kay?"

"Why do you want to sleep down there?" Alec asked as I turned for his bedroom door.

"Because you don't have a guest bedroom and I really don't feel like sleeping on the floor," I replied. "I mean, I know you have carpet, but it's still not very comfortable."

"Just shut up and come here," Alec said, grabbing my arm. "You let me sleep in your bed at Yugi's, so I'm gonna let you sleep in my bed tonight."

"You're gonna let me?" I repeated, raising an eyebrow as Alec pulled me down on the right side of the bed. "I feel so honored."

"Which would you rather sleep on?" Alec asked as he turned out the lights and got under the blankets on the left side of the bed. "A bed with a mattress or a couch?"

"Bed," I grinned. "Now good night."

"Night, Em," Alec said before we both fell asleep.


	29. Uncle Nick

I woke up to the sensation of someone repeatedly poking my arm. "Alec…" I moaned, sleepily opening my eyes. "What the hell are you doing?"

"I've been trying to get you up for the past hour," Alec replied, grinning. "Now get up. Your foster parents are here and they want to talk to you."

"You couldn't have just sent them away," I muttered, standing up as I ran my hand through my hair. "When I'm tired, I tend to get annoyed faster."

"Good luck," Alec said as I started to walk out of his room.

"Oh no you don't," I said, grabbing his arm as I walked downstairs. "You're coming with me whether you want to or not." I let go of his arm when I knew he would follow me and walked slowly and sleepily toward my foster parents, ready to collapse on the floor at any time.

"Sweetheart!" Dani exclaimed when she saw me, pulling me into a tight hug.

"Can't…breathe…" I gasped, holding out my hand. Alec quickly grabbed it and pulled me into him, keeping an arm around my shoulders. "Why are you guys here?" I asked when I finally got my breath back.

"We were worried when you didn't come home," Angel replied.

"Didn't Seto tell you where I was?" I asked. "I just stayed here overnight because it's closer to Sparkx Industries and Alec said I could."

"Are you coming home tonight, sweetie?" Dani asked as I turned for the stairs.

"Don't know," I replied, shrugging. "Probably. If I do, thought, it'll be around 2 or 3 in the morning. And if I get off that late, I'll probably just pass out in the bedroom in my office. Seto turns 18 in a few days and then I'll keep staying with him. Easy."

"You mean you aren't going to choose us to stay with?" Dani asked, looking surprised.

"No chance," I replied, grinning as I started walking upstairs. "I don't know what you guys thought I am, but according to the room you gave me, you apparently think I'm a girly-girl. I'll tell you one thing, I'm more a boy than a girl and I don't do skirts, high-heels, or pink of any kind. Later!"

Leaving Dani and Angel staring after me, I headed up into Alec's room, Alec following me. "I'll bring your clothes back later, kay?" I asked, pulling on a pair of his jeans and a red T-shirt, using one of his brown belts to keep the jeans from falling down.

"Whatever," Alec said, waving his hand in my direction. "Just be careful."

"See you later, Alec," I said, hugging him before running off downstairs and grabbing his skateboard, rolling down the street to Sparkx Industries.

"Good morning, Miss Hitachiin," Moka said as I walked in, leaving my skateboard up against the wall. "I trust you slept well."

"Still a bit tired, but I'm fine," I replied, heading for the elevator. "Make sure no one takes that board."

"Miss Hitachiin, there's a visitor waiting for you in your office," Moka said as the elevator doors opened.

"Thanks," I replied.

"Good morning, young lady. What floor are you visiting today?"

I looked up and saw a tall man that looked about 40 or so standing in the elevator. "Uh, 69, please," I replied, walking in as the doors closed.

"The top floor, huh?" the man asked, pressing the button. "Are you doing a report for school on Sparkx Industries?"

"Uh, yeah," I replied, smirking to myself. "You could say that." Suddenly, my phone rang. "Hello?" I asked, flipping it open. "Night, Night! Calm down…Yes, I'm sure I fixed all the problems…No, you can't stop me from trying again. I promise this time it will work…Night, I'm going to do it again and you can't stop me. Goodbye."

"Excuse me for asking, but who were you arguing with?" the man asked as I set my cell phone back in my jeans pocket. "A brother, perhaps?"

"More like a friend," I corrected as the elevator doors opened on the 69th floor. "Why exactly are you here?"

"I've come to speak with the CEO of this company," the man replied. "I am Jeff Hitachiin's older brother, Nick Hitachiin."

"This can't be good," I thought as I opened the door to my office.

"You're here!"

I looked over at my desk and saw Joey sitting in the chair. "Joey, what are you doing?" I asked as he ran over to me and hugged me. Seeing the look on Nick's face, I led him over to the couch. "Joey, please just stay here and keep quiet for a few minutes."

"But, Em—" Joey started to argue.

"Here, you can keep Blaze company for a sec," I said, taking out my Red-Eyes Black Dragon card and running my hand over it. The mini-dragon appeared at my feet and once it saw Joey, it bounded over to him, nuzzling its head against his leg.

"Miss, do you know where my brother or his wife is?" Nick asked as I walked over to my desk.

"Let's see…" I replied, sitting in my chair and kicking my shoes off. I propped my feet up on the desk and picked up a report that had 'READ IMMEDIATELY' at the top in red. "My mom's dead of a heart attack and my dad's in jail for child abuse…No, no wait. Seto got him out of jail. So…you could check a bar, or you know, a cemetery."

"So who's the current CEO?" Nick asked. "Is it their mechanic? Mr. Ross Arnez?"

"Guess again," I grinned. "Who am I?"

"A young high school girl who is doing a report on Sparkx Industries," Nick guessed as I sat up straight with my feet under the desk.

"Nice try," I smirked, grabbing a pen before I signed my name at the bottom of the report in my hands. "My parents were your brother and your sister-in-law. I'm their only daughter. My name is Emilee Hitachiin and I'm the CEO and owner of Sparkx Industries."

"So you're the daughter my little brother was so proud of," Nick said. "Well, you won't have to worry about his company anymore. I've come to take it off your hands."

"Why the hell would I give you my company?" I asked, standing up and walking over to where Joey was scratching Blaze. "Listen, Joey, I'll be back as soon as I can. Please make sure nothing happens to Blaze and I'm gonna leave Burst with you as well." Giving him a quick kiss, I summoned Burst and walked out of my office, Nick right behind me.

"What exactly do you get from running Sparkx Industries?" Nick asked as I headed down to meet Night for another test.

"Well, it's the last thing I have of my parents," I replied, opening the door to where I was meeting Night. "Plus, it's fun. Fun being able to prove that people shouldn't underestimate 16-year-old girls."

"What'll happen to the company if something happens to you, then?" Nick asked.

"Sis!"

I grinned as I turned and caught Jay as he flung himself at me in a tight hug. "How are you, Jay?" I asked, noticing that Coo was floating frantically around Jay's head. "I see Coo is happy to see me."

"Well, yeah," Jay replied, grinning. "He hasn't seen you in a day or so." He noticed Nick and tugged on the bottom of my shirt, making me look down at him. "Who's he?"

"I was going to ask the same thing," Nick said, looking at me. "And I still need an answer for my question. If something happens to you, what will happen to the company?"

"This is my little brother, Jay," I said, looking over at Nick again. "If anything happens to me, he'll take over the company in my absence."

"This boy is your brother?" Nick asked in disbelief.

"Yep, and my successor," I smirked as I walked over to Night, Jay still hanging onto the bottom of my shirt. "Night, did you look over the report I gave you for my project?"

"Yes, but I'm not sure you should try again until you get some beta testers for it," Night replied, concern in his voice.

"I'm going to test it myself because I'm the only one who knows about it besides you," I said. "And I'm the only one who knows how to use it."

"Let me take Jay to Ross, then," Night said, taking Jay's hand.

"See you later, sis," Jay said, following Night as he walked toward Ross who was currently overlooking a beta testing.

"Okay, get out," I told Nick as I pushed past him and headed down to the 23rd floor. "I really don't need you seeing what I'm doing right now."

"Why?" Nick asked as I stopped in front of the door hiding my secret projects.

"Because if anyone finds out what I do on this floor, it'll be very bad," I replied, sliding my id card through the slot on the wall. "Now go away before security escorts you out." I punched in my 4-number code and grinned as I heard the door unlock. "Bye-bye." Closing the door before Nick could follow me in, I locked it and walked over to the computer screen mounted on the wall. Pressing my palm against the bottom left corner, I turned toward the back wall and took my palm away from the screen when I heard a small buzzing sound.

"Night only knows about this," I thought, taking a look down at the goggles and gun still on the podium. "But he doesn't know about the other things I'm hiding." Walking through the door that I just unlocked, I punched in a code and watched a portion of the wall slide away. As soon as I walked through that door, it slid shut behind me, lights flickering on as it locked behind me.

"Computer," I said, walking toward a small box mounted on the far wall, "unlock." Immediately, the small box clicked open and stayed open as I pulled its contents out then closed the lid.

"Good morning, Emilee," the computer said in its robotic tone. "Are we going to try this again?"

"Uh-huh," I replied, slipping the gloves from the box on. "Hopefully, they'll work this time and not get me hospitalized for burns again."

"Maybe we should try a safer monster instead of a fire attribute this time," the computer suggested as I walked to the center of the room.

"You're probably right," I agreed. "Computer, set the card as Crystal Beast Ruby Carbuncle."

"The system is ready and waiting," the computer said.

"Good," I thought. "I hope this'll work since I'm pretty sure I can only touch duel monsters if I summon their spirits myself. If this works, it'll be a way for other people to do it as well." The computer summoned a Ruby Carbuncle in front of me as I knelt down, then stood by with an emergency medical call.

"Day number…I've lost track," I said. "Computer."

"Day number 825, Emilee," the computer told me.

"Right," I said, nodding. "Day number 825, test number 56, subject Crystal Beast Ruby Carbuncle. All right, here we go." I reached my hand out to the duel monster and grinned as it rubbed up against my glove. "Test is a success," I said, scratching the top of the Carbuncle's head. "Just to make sure." Taking my hand back, I slipped the glove off and reached for the Ruby Carbuncle again only to have my hand move through it. As soon as I touched it, the duel monster disappeared.

"Well, test is still a success," I muttered, standing up as I slipped my other glove off. "We just have to be careful on which monsters we use them on. Fire and thunder attributes are very hazardous."

"Shall I schedule us to use them in the showcase, Emilee?" the computer asked as I locked the gloves back in the box.

"The showcase?" I asked, a bit confused.

"The showcase is tomorrow and every major company in Domino is expected to bring their latest designs and show them off," the computer explained. "Sparkx Industries is expected to attend as is KaibaCorp, Flare Corp., Razz Co., Green Corp., and a few other major companies."

"Um…sure, put the gloves on the list to take, but make sure no one sees the list except me," I said. "No, wait. Moka has to see the list. Label it as Holographic Projections."

"Will that be all, Emilee?" the computer asked as I unlocked the door.

"Inform me immediately if anyone besides Night gets in," I added. "Shut down." I walked out and headed back up to my office, wondering how I would get through the showcase tomorrow.

"You're back!" Joey exclaimed as I walked in, heading over to my desk.

"Joey, why are you even here?" I asked, leaving back in my chair and closing my eyes.

"I can't see my own girlfriend?" Joey asked back, walking over to me.

"Not while she's working," I muttered, moving an arm over my still-closed eyes. Joey grinned and moved my arm before he kissed me.

"Feel better," he asked, moving back slightly, his hand still around my wrist.

"Maybe you should come by more often," I grinned, kissing him again.

"Emilee," Ross said, knocking on my door.

"Joey," I hissed, pushing him away, "get under the desk. Ross can't see you."

"Why?" Joey asked, confused.

"Because he made me swear I'd never have a boy in my office besides Jay," I replied, pushing him down. "I'll do anything if you just stay quiet so I can get rid of him."

"You're gonna regret saying that," Joey promised, crawling under my desk as Ross opened my door.

"Emilee, are you going to stay here tonight?" Ross asked, walking up to my desk.

"Yeah, I need to do a couple more things before tomorrow," I replied as Jay stepped out from behind Ross. "I'll wear something nice tomorrow for the showcase."

"Can I stay here, too?" Jay asked, walking over to me.

"Sure thing, sweetie," I replied, kissing his forehead. "I made a room just for you. It's just down the hall and there are beds for Blaze, Burst, and Coo as well."

"Thanks, sis!" Jay exclaimed happily, running off to his room, my two dragons following right at his feet.

"I'll wake you up tomorrow," Ross said as he turned for the door.

"Just call me. Bye—uh!" I gasped as Joey ran his hand up the back of my leg, making me choke back laughter.

"Are you okay?" Ross asked.

"Y-Yeah," I got out. "Bye." Ross raised an eyebrow, but left anyway. "Joey!" I yelled, looking down at him. "Why did you do that? I'm extremely ticklish there!"

"You said you'd do anything," Joey said, smiling sheepishly as I stood up straight beside me.

"Yeah, so?" I asked, getting up and walking into my office bedroom.

"Well, I want to stay with you tonight," Joey replied, pushing me down on the bed. "And I want to go with you to the showcase thing tomorrow."

"You'll have to wear a suit," I warned him.

"I can do that," Joey said, kissing me. Folding the blankets back, he wrapped his arms around my waist and pulled me closer.

"Maybe having Joey at the showcase won't be that bad," I thought as I started to fall asleep. Moving everything work-related to the back of my mind, I cleared my head and fell asleep.


	30. The Showcase

_**One night and one more time. Thanks for the memories even thought they weren't so gray. He tastes like you only sweeter. One night, yeah—**_

"Hello?" I asked, flipping my phone open mid-ringtone.

"Time to get up, Sleeping Beauty," Ross's voice came over the phone, using my parent's nickname for me. "We'll be leaving in about a half hour."

"Thanks," I muttered, snapping the phone shut. Slipping out of Joey's arms, I walked over to the closet, glad I hadn't cleaned out some of my dad's suits that were hanging up. "Joey," I said, taking out a red and black one, "get up. You need to get dressed."

Joey mumbled something inaudible, but changed nonetheless. As he walked out of the bedroom, I closed the door and stripped out of the clothes I'd slept in. reaching into the closet, I pulled on a pair of black slacks, a white T-shirt, and a dark blue collared button-up shirt. Quickly tying a black tie around my neck, I also pulled on a black blazer and grabbed the nicest boots I had.

"Haven't worn a suit in a long time," I muttered, pulling on my boots as I half-hopped out of the bedroom.

"Cut your hair and you could pass for a boy," Joey commented as I stood up straight.

"Funny," I muttered, tying my hair back in a ponytail. Blowing a stray burgundy and gold streaked piece of hair out of my face, I set my phone in my pocket and walked out to the elevator.

"Where are you going?" Joey asked as I stepped out on the 23rd floor.

"You'll see," I replied, unlocking the door.

_**We're the boys with the cars that show off our scars that get the girl to rock your world. Don't you wish you know what it was like, to be me? We're the boys with guitars, we're big rock stars and we'll steal your girl and rock her world. Don't you wish you know what it was like, to be me?**_

"People have got to stop changing my ringtones," I muttered as I let the call got to voicemail, unlocking one of my secret rooms. Walking in, I grabbed the box the gloves were in. I started to walk back out to the elevator when I stopped and looked back at the goggles and gun I needed to fix. "Might as well…" I unlocked the box and set them in, locking it back up as I walked back out to the elevator.

"So, what was that all about?" Joey asked as we rode the elevator down to the lobby.

"It's just something I'm gonna try out," I replied, grabbing Alec's skateboard as I headed outside.

"Miss Hitachiin," Moka said, tossing me a set of keys.

"Company car," I said when I saw the confused look on Joey's face. "The company car that just happens to be a Lamborghini." Walking outside, I stopped in front of a sleek black car with the Sparkx Industries symbol on both doors. Tossing my skateboard and the box in, I locked the car and walked over to where people were loading machinery onto a truck.

"Everything's loaded up, Miss Hitachiin," Night said, sliding the truck doors shut. "And your brother has agreed to stay here with Miss Akashiya. He did want to give you these, though." He held out my Blue-Eyes and Red-Eyes cards.

"Thanks," I said, sticking them in the inside pocket of my jacket. "I'll meet you there."

"You're not taking the limousine?" Night asked.

"Nope," I smirked, turning for my car. "I'm taking the company car."

"Ah, the Lamborghini," Night said, grinning. "You've always loved that car."

"What can I say?" I said. "I'm a sucker for beautiful fast cars." Sliding into the driver's seat, I started up the car, grinning as the engine hummed to life. "Hold on tight," I said, practically slamming down on the gas.

Overall, it took me about 4 minutes to reach the convention center the showcase was being held in. "It doesn't look like there's any parking," Joey said, having resorted to hanging onto the door for dear life.

"Au contraire," I smirked, pulling into a space marked for Sparkx Industries. "One of the perks of being CEO of a major company." I handed Joey my phone to hold and grabbed Alec's skateboard, checking the time. "Crap! I'm late! Joey, take that box and meet me inside! Don't let anyone touch it!" Leaving Joey by the car, I ran off, Alec's skateboard in my arms. "This is not working," I thought. "Time for Plan B!" I hopped on the skateboard and boarded as fast as I could toward the convention center.

Inside, the CEO's off all the companies in the showcase were on a small stage being introduced to a crowd in front of them. "From KaibaCorp, we have Seto Kaiba," the announcer said as Kaiba stood up. "From Flare Corp., Damien Mastan. From Razz Co., Mark Cornick. From Green Corp., Alvin Green. From Industrial Illusions, Maximillion Pegasus. And from Sparkx Industries—has anyone seen her?"

"I'm here!" I exclaimed, boarding into the room and through the crowd. "I'm here!" I jumped the skateboard up on the stage and spun around, coming to a stop.

"And from Sparkx Industries, the young Miss Emilee Hitachiin," the announcer said as I tried to catch my breath. "Please enjoy this year's showcase!"

"Pup, where were you?" Kaiba asked as we walked toward our separate spots.

"Someone got the time wrong," I replied, shrugging. "Is it my fault? I got here, didn't I?"

"Emilee!" Joey called, running up to me.

"So, the mutt can clean up," Kaiba smirked, looking Joey up and down as he handed me my box.

"Quit it, Seto," I growled, unlocking my box. "Leave him alone for today." I took Joey's hand and led him over to where Night was setting up our stuff. "Night."

Night handed me a laptop, then turned back to what he was doing. "Joey, please help," I said, turning the laptop on as I sat at a small table. "Night'll tell you what to do." As Joey went to help, I took off my jacket and draped it over the back of my chair as I rolled up my sleeves. "Test time," I thought, my fingers flying across the keyboard as I sat up a safe lineup of duel monsters. Sending the information to the microchips in the gloves, I closed the laptop and stood up. Grabbing the gloves, I set the goggles on my head and stuck the gun in my back pocket, sticking a few tools in my front pockets. Leaving Night to show off out new machines, I snuck off to a rather secluded corner, slipping the gloves on and setting the tools at my feet.

Back with Night, he had just finished setting things up when someone tapped on his shoulder. "How can I help you?" he asked, smiling as he turned around.

"I'm lookin' for the CEO," a man said, looking down at the shorter mechanic.

"She's around here somewhere," Night said, looking around. "There she is!" He pointed toward me as I readjusted the straps keeping the gloves on my hands.

"Thanks," the man replied, looking at the 2 small kids behind him. "Okay, kids, go ahead and be careful."

"Thanks, Daddy!" one of them called as they ran off toward me. More and more kids saw me and joined the first two as they created a small crowd in front of me.

"Hey, there," I said, smiling as I took off my gloves, sticking them in my pocket. "Do you guys wanna see something cool?"

"Yeah!" the crowd of children replied, sitting down in front of me.

"Okay…you." I pointed at a small girl in front. "Come here, sweetie. What's your name?"

"Mire," she replied, smiling up at me.

"Well, that's a pretty name," I said, pulling a card out of my shirt pocket. "My name's Emilee. Do you know what I do?"

"You're a CEO. That's what my daddy says."

"And do you know what a CEO is?" I got a shake of the head as an answer. "It means I'm in charge of a big company. Now, how many of you know what Duel Monsters is?" Almost every kid raised their hand.

"I wanna become a duelist just like you when I grow up," a little boy said as I knelt down.

"Aw, that's so sweet," I replied. "Now, do you still wanna see something cool?"

"Yeah!"

I showed the kids a card. "Who knows what this is?"

"A Blue-Eyes White Dragon," Mire replied. "There are only 4 in the world. You have one and Seto Kaiba has the other 3."

"Good job," I complimented. "Now, has anyone seen a Blue-Eyes White Dragon in real life? Of course not. It's just a card. But watch what I can do." I ran my hand over the card and grinned as Burst appeared in front of me. "Kids, this is Burst, my Blue-Eyes White Dragon. Mira, come here."

"I-Is he real?" Mira asked nervously as she took a step closer, the rest of the kids staring intently. "He's not gonna hut me, is he?"

"No, sweetie," I replied. "He's completely harmless. Just think of him as a puppy. He sure acts like it. Go ahead, you can pet him." Mira's hand tentatively touched the top of Burst's head, and she smiled and scratched him when Burst started growling in pleasure. "If you want to pet him, be very gentle and form a line behind Mira." The crowd of kids lined up behind Mira and took turns petting the very pleased dragon. "Let's keep this our little secret, okay?" I asked as I sent Burst back to his card, sticking it back in my shirt pocket.

"Okay," the kids agreed, hugging me all at once.

"Time to go back to your parents," I said as I grabbed my stuff and stood up, turning toward where Night was overlooking a demonstration. Setting the goggles on top of my head, I loosened my tie and unbuttoned the first couple buttons on my shirt as I started walking. Unscrewing a panel from the side of the gun in my hands, I tried to figure out the problem as I turned my laptop on.

"Miss Hitachiin," Night said, drawing my attention away from my work. "I think wires are crossed again. Care to fix it?"

"Night, how many times have I told you, call me Emilee," I said, walking over to him. "When you call me Miss Hitachiin, it makes me feel like I'm 25. I'm only 16! You are one of my best mechanics and my friend. Started treating me like it."

"I would, but if I did, I'd fear for my job with every word out of my mouth," Night smirked, handing me a pair of gloves.

"Tell you what," I bargained, rolling my sleeves up above my elbows before I slipped the gloves on, "you treat me like a friend and not like your boss and I won't fire you unless you deserve it."

"Deal," Night grinned, shaking my hand.

"Boost, please," I said. "I'm pretty sure the wires on top need to be fixed, not the ones underneath." Night linked his hands together and stood his ground as I used him to get up on top of my machine. Straddling the top, I unlocked a panel and pulled out a couple wires. "Who did all the internal wiring?" I asked, moving a few wires around.

"I think it was Harry Aono," Night replied, handing me a pen.

"This is why I fired him," I said, writing on the back of my hand a reminder to do a full check later. "Did you have someone who was going to try it out?"

"Not really," Night replied. "But if anything goes wrong, you'll be the first to know."

"Better be," I muttered, handing his pen back as Night helped me down. "I'm gonna be back in a few minutes. Teach Joey about this; he might need to help me later." I turned around and looked toward where Flare Corp. was and my jaw almost hit the floor.

"Ladies and gentlemen, may I present a living duel monster!" Damien announced as a man next to him pressed a button on the gloves he was wearing, a Blue-Eyes White Dragon appearing in front of him.

"This isn't good," I thought, clenching my teeth together as the man started to rub the Blue-Eyes's back. I stormed up to Damien, ignoring the whispers of the crowd.

"Why are you here?" Damien asked, smirking down at me. "The playground's outside."

"Blaze," I growled, summoning him from my shirt pocket, "fetch." The small Red-Eyes ran forward and jumped up, tearing the gloves away from the user. The Blue-Eyes disappeared as Blaze started back toward me.

"Get this **thing** away from me," Damien said, kicking Blaze away.

"You jerk!" I yelled at him as Blaze limped into my arms. "First of all, these gloves are mine. The Sparkx symbol is on each one. Your guy over there; if he'd kept them on for a couple seconds longer, he'd be dead right now. They're just prototypes. And second, how dare you hurt my dragon!" Spinning on my heel, I left Damien standing as I walked back to where Night was working. I slipped the gloves in my back pocket and cradled Blaze close to my chest as I sat down, cursing Damien constantly.

"Where does it hurt, Blaze?" I asked, gently setting the Red-Eyes on the table in front of me. Blaze lifted his right wing and I saw a small cut running a couple inches down the inside. "Wow," I whistled, gently wiping away a few drops of blood that ran down the wing. "I'll patch this up, but you'll have to keep from flying for at least a couple days. Promise?" Blaze snorted his approval, a small stream of fire scorching the top of the table. "Night," I said, holding out a hand.

Night tossed me the first-aid kit on the wall, then turned back to what he was doing. Grabbing the medical tape, I set the kit under the table and turned back to Blaze. Gently covering the cut, I watched as Blaze experimentally moved his wing up and down. "Now remember our promise," I said, holding out his card. "No flying for a couple days or until I say. Now, get back in your card before you get even more hurt."

"Emilee, it's time to go," Night said as Blaze disappeared into his card.

"Get everything loaded up and back to Sparkx," I ordered, standing up as I slipped Blaze's card in my deck. I locked my personal projects in my box then handed it to Night. "Put this is my room on the 23rd floor and don't let anyone touch it." Night nodded, then went to overlook loading. "Joey," I said, walking up to him. "I've gotta go. See you tomorrow?"

"Of course," Joey replied, pulling me close before kissing me. "I'll see ya later."

Smiling, I grabbed my jacket and skateboard as I turned for the door. "Pup," Kaiba said, walking up to me. "May I speak with you outside?"

"I guess," I replied, following him out to his limo. "What's up?"

"Listen to my voice," Kaiba ordered slowly, his voice steady and quiet. "Don't move."

"Yes," I replied. I did as the voice ordered, knowing that I had to please it.

Kaiba smirked, seeing my eyes start to glaze over. Leaning down, Kaiba kissed me, moving his hands around to the back of my neck. "You won't remember this," Kaiba said before he kissed me again. "When I leave, you'll wake up." He kissed me one final time before letting me go and getting into his limo. The minute he drove away, something clicked and I shook my head to clear it.

"Weird," I muttered, throwing my jacket over my shoulder as I hopped on Alec's skateboard and headed toward Sparkx Industries. "Jay?" I called as I walked into my office. "You here?"

"Big sister?" Jay asked sleepily, sitting up from his place on the couch.

"Come on, Jay," I said softly, smiling down at him. "We need to go home." Tossing my jacket on my desk, I lifted Jay up on my back and headed back downstairs. "This'll be interesting," I thought as I skateboarded toward Kaiba's house, Jay still on my back.

A few nervous minutes later, I walked into Kaiba's house with Jay, leaving Alec's skateboard by the front door. "Good night, Jay," I whispered, laying him in his bed. Walking into my own room, I quickly changed into my pajamas and crawled into bed. As I fell asleep, I failed to notice the alarm set on my clock that was set for 9:00 a.m.


	31. Birthdays and Betrayals

The alarm woke me up, much to my surprise. "What the—?" I mumbled, slapping a hand down on the snooze button. "Don't remember setting the alarm," I muttered, running a hand through my hair as I stumbled over to the closet. Quickly pulling on a pair of black jeans and a red T-shirt, I walked downstairs to find breakfast.

"Em!" Jay exclaimed, running up to me. "Come with me!"

"What's wrong?" I asked as he grabbed my arm and led me to another room.

"What day is it?" Jay asked back.

"Saturday."

"That's not what I meant."

"Fine, it's September 30th."

"And what's special about today?"

"It's the day I turn 17."

"Exactly. Happy birthday, sis." Jay pushed me in a room and I saw Kaiba, Mokuba, Yugi, Tristan, Teá, Bakura, Ryou, Duke, Malik, Marik, Joey, and Alec all grinning at me. Well, Kaiba wasn't grinning, but it was close enough.

"Okay, I get why most of them are here, but why are those 3 here?" I asked Jay, pointing at Duke, Bakura, and Marik.

"They told me they were your friends," Jay replied.

"They do anything and they're dead," I thought.

"Don't we get to give you a birthday kiss?" Duke smirked.

"You don't," I replied. "Joey, might, though."

"Uh, Em, your deck's vibrating," Alec said, pointing toward the case.

Looking down, I reached into the vibrating deck and pulled out Blaze and Burst's cards. "You guys win," I said, running my hand over the cards. "But you need to stay with me, kay?" The two dragons sat obediently at my feet as I set their cards back in my deck.

"Come on, sis," Jay said, pulling on my arm. "We were gonna play games."

"You guys start without me," I said, turning for the door. "I just need some fresh air." I walked out the door and toward the pool, Blaze and Burst right on my heels.

"I think I know what's going on," Alec said. "I'll talk to her." He walked outside and found me sitting at the pool's edge with the legs of my jeans rolled up, my feet sitting in the water. "Hey, Em," Alec said, sitting next to me. "It's your dad, isn't it?"

"He left a note in my office saying he didn't care what anyone did, he wants to see me," I told him. "He doesn't really trust you and I don't really understand that. I mean, your parents trust me, don't they?"

"Yeah, uh…about that…"

"Alec Sonte, do your parents know about me?"

"Well, they know that you're a girl, my best friend, and a couple months younger then me."

"That's all?"

"I had a good reason. I didn't want to lose you. When I was about 4, right before I met you, my best friend in the whole world was a boy named Shawn. He didn't know as much about me as you, but he knew enough. See, when my parents met Shawn and saw how close we were, they immediately thought he and I were gay. They made me move and I haven't seen him since."

"Shawn…Shawn…last name, please."

"Shawn Stefanoes."

"He works for me."

"What?"

"Yeah, he's been at Sparkx for at least 3 years or so. I can take you to meet him tomorrow. I have a meeting with Weap Tech, though, first."

"Wait, Weap Tech?"

"Yeah, what's the problem?"

"That's my parent's company. Business partners, me, and now you know what they do. Please don't tell anyone or I'm dead."

"Cross my heart."

"You are the best, Em. Now come on, let's get back to your party." We both stood up and turned around and walked inside, Alec's arm around my shoulders. "We're still doing our tradition, right?" I asked as we walked into the room we'd first come from.

"Can you remind me?" Alec asked back.

"On birthdays, we go to each other's houses and do random things until we fall asleep," I explained. "So…?"

"Of course," Alec replied, grinning.

"So, we'll get through this day, do our tradition, them tomorrow we'll meet your parents together and then I'll take you to see Shawn," I said. Alec nodded and we looked forward just in time to see Marik and Bakura race toward us.

"Move it!" Bakura hissed as they pushed past us.

"What's your hurry?" I asked, glaring at them as I crossed my arms.

"Your brother is making us play hide-and-seek," Bakura said.

"The winner gets to decide what you wear today and gets a kiss," Marik added.

"I'm gettin' in on this," Alec said, rubbing his hands together. "I haven't kissed you since 7th grade. Getting to dress you up is just a bonus."

"Wait!" I called as he ran off. "Shoot!" Turning on my heels, I walked until I found a library. Scrolling my fingers across books, I pulled out one called The Alchemyst. "Looks interesting enough," I thought, sitting down sideways in a chair. Moving my legs over the arm of the chair, I opened my book and started reading.

~1 hour 30 minutes later~

"Em?" Jay asked, walking into the library. "You here?"

"Game over?" I asked, setting my book on the pile I'd already finished on the floor. "Who won?"

"It was a tie," Jay replied as I followed him into the hall.

"Dare I ask between who?"

"Alec and Seto."

"Great. Alec's gonna dress me up in something slutty and I have no idea about Seto."

"Come on, sis! We were gonna watch a movie."

Shaking my head, I grinned and followed Jay to a room with a couple couches and chairs, a flatscreen T.V. on the wall. "Before we start, I need to do something with your outfit," Alec said, taking my arm. "You might hate this, but I'll be loving it." He pulled me into a room filled with closes and closed the door behind us. "Let's get started."

"Please keep it at least a little modest, please," I pleaded as he skimmed over a rack of clothes.

"No promises," Alec grinned, grabbing some clothes. "Get changed and I'll have shoes ready for you."

Taking a deep breath, I changed and then walked back out to Alec to see myself in a mirror. I was in a tight blue tube top that showed a lot of skin, a tight black leather miniskirt with a slit up the side resting on my hips. I took the shoes from Alec and reluctantly pulled them on, looking at the knee-high leather high-heeled boots on my feet. "You are an evil, evil boy," I told Alec when I saw him grinning at me.

"Thank you," Alec smirked, grabbing my waist before gently pressing his lips to mine.

"You suck," I said when he pulled away, walking back to the room the movie was in.

"Good choice of clothes," Tristan said, looking me up and down.

"Tristan!" Joey yelled, punching the brunette's arm. "That's my girlfriend!"

"Well, this is probably the only time I'll be wearing something like this, so take a good look," I warned as everyone sat down to start the movie. I sat on the floor as Joey sat behind me on a couch, leaning back between his legs.

"What're we watching?" Alec asked as he sat next to me, slipping an arm around my shoulders.

"Twilight," Jay replied, pressing the play button on the remote.

As the movie started, I tried not to sit like a guy and relaxed between Joey's legs as Joey played aimlessly with my hair.

~2 and a half hours later~

"Thanks, Jay," I said, ruffling his hair as I stood up. "Today was really fun."

"Thanks for inviting us," Yugi said as everyone except Jay, Joey, Alec, and Kaiba, and Mokuba left. "I'll see you later, Em."

"Pup, may I speak to you?" Kaiba asked, taking my arm. He led me into an adjoining room, then immediately pinned me against the dresser next to the door.

"Set—!" I never got to finish my sentence before Kaiba kissed me. I couldn't help it, but I melted into the kiss.

"Hey, Em, I—" Joey froze when he saw Kaiba kissing me and me making no move to push him off.

"Joey!" I exclaimed, pushing Kaiba away. "Joey, this isn't what it looks like!"

"So you're just making out with moneybags here for fun, then?" Joey asked, crossing his arms. "I never thought you'd cheat on me, Emilee. Especially not with Kaiba."

"But, Joey, I—"

"I don't want to hear it. I hope you and Kaiba are happy together." Joey turned and walked out, slamming the door shut behind him.

"This can't be happening," I thought, trying to blink back tears.

"Uh-oh," Jay thought as he and Mokuba watched through the hole they'd made in the wall.

"Pup, are you okay?" Kaiba asked, looking down at me.

"I've got to get out of here," I thought, running as fast as I could out of Kaiba's house and down the street.

"Hey, Em, wait!" Alec called, running after me with Blaze and Burst right behind him. He followed me as I ran into his house, collapsing on a couch in the living room. "Em?" he asked softly, kneeling next to me. "You okay?"

"W-What do you th-think?" I got out, tears running down my cheeks. "I'm pretty sure I j-just lost the best thing that ever happened to me besides my brother."

"Do you wanna stay here until you work this out?" Alec asked, wiping away my tears as I sent Blaze and Burst back to their cards. I nodded, smiling slightly as we both stood up and walked into the kitchen. "Brownie—"

"—sundae," I finished as Alec pulled out ice cream and syrup, pulling a pan of brownies out from a cupboard. "I'm gonna call my foster parents real quick. Be right back."

Alec watched as I walked out of the kitchen, phone in hand. "How am I supposed to explain her to mom and dad?" he thought as he started to make the brownie sundaes, switching on some music as he worked. "She's different from any other girl I've ever met. Any guy for that matter, either. Explaining might be easy compared to convincing them she's not my girlfriend, though."

"Alright," I said, walking back in the kitchen and grabbing two spoons. "Dani and Angel have agreed to let me spend the night if I call them in the morning and if anything happens. You know, I'm pretty sure they think I'm a 5-year-old girly-girl who can't take care of herself."

"They're probably just glad that they found a girl who would stay with them," Alec said, handing me a sundae as I handed him a spoon. "No strike that. A child who would stay with them."

"And technically," I said, taking a bite of my sundae, "I'm pretty sure I've actually been at their house once or twice since they 'adopted' me. I'm amazed they haven't tied me to my bed to keep me at their house yet."

"So, you gonna crash here until you can work things out?" Alec asked as we hopped up on the counter with our sundaes.

"Either here or at Sparkx," I replied, recognizing the song that was playing as 'Peachy.' "I'm gonna change real quick."

"Check the bottom drawer of my dresser," Alec said as I set my sundae on the counter and headed upstairs.

"Tomorrow, I'll need to finish all that I have to do, then maybe I'll try to talk to Joey and get things straightened out," I thought, opening the bottom drawer of Alec's dresser. I pulled out a pair of jeans a few sizes too big and a white long-sleeved shirt, quickly changing into them as I also pulled on a brown belt to keep the jeans from falling down. "God, this is gonna be harder then I thought."

"Alec?" I called as I walked downstairs, not hearing him anywhere. I heard music being played throughout the house, but I couldn't find Alec anywhere. "Alec, if you don't come out right now, I swear to God, I'll never speak to you again!"

"You know I don't take that threat seriously, don't you?" Alec asked from his hiding place.

"You should," I said, crossing my arms and laying back on the couch when I couldn't find him. "Now get out here right now."

Alec grinned and walked up behind me, making me flinch when he poked my back. "Come on," he said, laughing as I stood up and glared at him. "Let's get some sleep. You've got a big day ahead of you."

Shaking my head, I followed Alec up to his room and crawled onto the right side of his bed as he got onto the left side. "Night, Em," Alec said as I closed my eyes and fell asleep.


	32. Meeting Alec's Past

"I hope you and Kaiba are happy together…I hope you and Kaiba are happy together…I hope you and Kaiba are happy together…"

I sat up in bed, Joey's words echoing in my head over and over. "Okay, don't think about that," I thought, standing up and stretching. Running a hand through my hair, I shook Alec awake and headed downstairs for breakfast.

"What time is it?" Alec yawned as he walked into the kitchen behind me, grabbing the piece of toast I handed him.

"Almost 8," I replied, pulling on a pair of boots I'd found in Alec's room. "My meeting with your parents starts in maybe 10 minutes."

"Can I change at your office?" Alec asked as we walked out to the Mustang parked in front of his house.

"I guess," I replied as I started driving. "I'm pretty sure my dad's old stuff will fit you. I think I have his jeans somewhere around the bedroom."

"Miss Hitachiin," Moka said as Alec and I walked into Sparkx Industries. "There is a Mr. and Mrs. Sonte from Weap Tech waiting for you."

"Tell them I'll be right there," I said as we walked into the elevator. "Alec, is there anything I should know about your parents?"

"Um, they don't like to be told they're wrong," Alec replied as we opened the door to my office. "And they hate it when they don't get what they want."

"Alec, what are you doing here? Shouldn't you be at work?"

I looked up at my desk and saw a man and a woman, both in suits. "Mom!" Alec exclaimed in fake surprise. "Dad! What are you doing here?"

"We have a meeting with the CEO of Sparkx Industries," Alec's mom replied.

"Em, this is Elizabeth and Kyle Sonte," Alec introduced when I looked over at him for an introduction. "Mom, Dad, this is Emilee Hitachiin."

"Nice to meet you, Miss Emilee," Kyle said, looking me up and down. "Do you have any idea where the CEO of this company is?"

"Does no one understand that maybe I could be the CEO?" I thought, crossing my arms. "You're lookin' at her," I said, shifting my weight to one foot. "Now if you'll excuse us, Alec and I need to change out of the clothes we slept in real quick." Leaving Elizabeth and Kyle staring after us, Alec and I walked into my bedroom and locked the door behind us. "Your mom and dad didn't look so happy when I told them I was the CEO," I said, handing Alec a pair of jeans and a T-shirt as I reached into the closet for my own clothes.

"Well, yeah," Alec said as I pulled on a pair of my nicest black jeans and a white T-shirt. "They also don't like it when the people they talk to are younger then them."

"Your parents have a lot of issues," I told him as I buttoned up a red T-shirt over my white one, tying a black tie around my neck.

"Tell me about it," Alec said, grinning as I pulled on a pair of black boots. "At least you didn't have to grow up with them."

"Yeah, I had to grow up with the parents who pretty much hated dueling which, by the way, made it even harder to become the King of Games, and a father who abused me more times then I can count," I said as we walked back out to Alec's parents. "Okay, Mr. and Mrs. Sonte, if you'll follow me to the conference room, we can get started," I said, leading Alec's parents out to the elevator to go down to the 43rd floor.

"Alec, how do you know this girl?" Elizabeth asked as the elevator started moving.

"Um," Alec replied nervously, "well…remember when I told you about my best friend? Well, Em is that best friend. She knows more about me then any other person I know and she's slept over at least a million times or so. And by the way, she's not my girlfriend and will probably never be."

"Subtle, Alec," I muttered as the elevator doors opened and we started walking. "Real subtle."

"So your best friend is the CEO of Sparkx Industries?" Kyle asked as Alec and I sat across from him and his wife.

"Shocking, isn't it?" I asked sarcastically. "Anyway, why did you schedule a meeting?"

"We wish to use some of your technology in a new design we have," Elizabeth explained. "We've talked with your mechanics, a Mr. Arnez and a Mr. Gallows, and we have cleared it with them on what we wish to use. It's nothing dangerous, I assure you, just some basic blueprints. All we need is your signature and we can start, giving the plans back as soon as possible."

"Should I trust them?" I whispered to Alec as his parents slid me a piece of paper and a pen.

"They're true to their word, I'll give them that," Alec whispered back. "If they say it's just basic stuff and they'll give it right back, then I'd trust them."

"Alright," I said, picking up the pen. I signed my name at the bottom and slid both paper and pen back, standing up with Alec. "This meeting is over. Good day to you both." Alec took my hand as we walked out of the conference room and to the stairs, heading down a few flights to meet Shawn.

"You made the right choice on trusting them," Alec said, letting go of my hand so I could unlock a door.

"I hope I did," I thought as we walked into an engineering room, walking up to a teenager halfway under a computer's control board. "Hey, Shawn, wake up!"

"Ow!" the 18-year-old under the control board yelled, banging his head when he jerked up suddenly. "What's with the wakeup call, boss? I thought your husband said I could sleep on the job as long as I wasn't caught."

"How long have you been asleep?" I asked, grinning slightly as I crossed my arms. "'Cause last time I checked, I don't have a husband."

"Emilee?" Shawn asked, confused. "What happened to your parents?"

"Where have you been?" I asked back, shaking my head. "Mom's dead and I have no clue where Dad is. As of a week or so ago, I'm your new boss."

"Cool," Shawn said, brushing off his pants.

"Shawn," Alec said, staring at the blonde teenager. "I can't believe it."

"Alec Sonte," Shawn said, grinning. "Long time no see, dude."

"How long has it been?" Alec asked as they gave each other a quick hug.

"14 years," Shawn replied. "So, you and the boss a thing now?"

"Eew," I said, kind of disgusted with the thought. "That's never gonna happen. He's my best friend and he's like my brother."

"Yeah, 'cause every sister kisses her brother," Alec smirked.

"That was twice and you know the reasons!" I yelled at him. "First, because you wanted to know if anything could ever happen between us! Second, because you won that stupid game of hide-and-seek!"

"Which I loved winning," Alec said smugly.

"You know, as interesting as this conversation is and as much as I want to know how it ends, I gotta know," Shawn interrupted. "Why did you wake me up?"

"Alec wanted to see you," I replied, shrugging.

"And hope that you could stay over at my house tonight," Alec added.

"What about your parents?" Shawn asked. "I thought they thought I was gay."

"Well, my parents don't live with me," Alec explained, grinning. "And because of some problems with Em's master—"

"Hey!" I interrupted, my hands clenching into fists at my sides. "Kaiba is not my master! He's nothing close to it! He's an annoying rich brat with a cocky attitude and thinks he can have anything he wants! He's the reason I don't have a boyfriend and I'm not following his orders anymore!"

"Well, what about this?" Alec asked, fingering the tags on the collar that was still around my neck.

"I still have that on because I can't get it off and I'm pretty sure only Kaiba can take it off," I growled as I pulled away, crossing my arms.

"Okay, break it up, you two," Shawn laughed, grinning. "Now, how about we get going. That is, if the boss will let me go home early."

"Work late tomorrow and it's a deal," I bargained, holding out my hand.

"Deal!" Shawn agreed, eagerly shaking my hand.

"Let's go," I said, leading the way down to the lobby.

"Miss Hitachiin, Mr. Yuki wanted me to give this to you," Moka said, handing me a stack of papers. "He said that it was this week's homework and he expected it in three days at the most." Groaning softly, I thanked Moka and walked out to the Mustang, tossing the papers in the backseat.

"This is your car?" Shawn asked in disbelief as Alec slid into the middle front seat.

"Our car, technically," Alec corrected as I got in the front seat.

"Don't I get to drive?" Shawn asked as he got into the passenger seat. "I'm probably a better driver. Nothin' personal, boss."

"None taken," I said, staring up the engine. "But you have to go the speed limit. I, on the other hand, can go as fast as I want as long as I don't hit anything or anyone. Alec, I'm gonna check a few places real quick and if I find Joey, I'll meet you at the house later, kay?" Alec nodded and we were off.

"Someone want to fill me in on the whole Kaiba/master thing?" Shawn asked as I drove toward the park.

"I really don't feel like explaining again, please don't make me do it," I said, stopping the car when I saw Joey sitting under a tree. "Alec, take over. I'll meet you back at your house. Try to get Shawn up-to-date with anything he asks unless it's about," my voice lowered as I whispered, "Blaze and Burst."

"Good luck, Em," Alec said as I got out of the car and walked toward Joey. Hearing the car drive away, I took a deep breath and kept walking.

"Joey?" I asked softly, standing in front of the blonde. "C-Can I talk to you?"

"Why don't you go talk to your new boyfriend," Joey told me, looking away.

"Joey, listen to me," I said, bowing my head. "I don't know why Kaiba kissed me and I have no idea why I didn't stop him. Like I told Alec, he's an annoying brat with a cocky attitude who thinks he can get anything he wants. Joey, I love you, not Kaiba. You are so much sweeter then he is. Please, Joey. You have to believe me."

Joey didn't say anything. I started to turn around when Joey grabbed my tie and stood up, keeping me in place. "Joey, if you're just gonna yell at me, I don't want to hear it," I said, still looking down. "I'll just go back to Alec's house."

"How long would you stay in Domino if you were living at Alec's house?" Joey asked.

"Probably just long enough to find my dad," I replied softly. "Then I'll go back to America to live with him again."

"What about Sparkx?"

"There's one in America. It's where my parents used to work when they weren't travelling. And I'm sure when I move back home, I won't be coming back for at least 4 years or so."

"Is there anything that'll make you stay?"

"I don't think so. Please let go of my tie so I can go, Joey."

Joey's hand tightened on my tie and he jerked sharply on it, pulling me closer to him. "Joey—" Joey cut me off with a passionate kiss, letting go of my tie only to wrap his arms around my waist.

"Em, I don't want ya to move," Joey said, his face still dangerously close to mine. "I want you to stay here with me. Will ya?"

"Yes," I replied before Joey kissed me again. "By the way," I started as I pulled away slightly, "why are you out here? Shouldn't you be at home?"

"Well, actually, I got kicked out," Joey admitted.

"What? Where are you staying, then?"

"At Yug's until I can get my own place."

"Wait a second. I bet I could get Kaiba to buy me a house here and then you could come live with me."

"Good luck with that."

"Thanks. I need to work right now but I'll see you tomorrow, kay?" I gave Joey a quick kiss before I ran off toward Alec's house, a plan starting to form in my mind. "Alec?" I called as I ran in his house. "Alec, you here?"

"Where else would I be?" Alec asked, sitting up from his place on the couch. "What did Joey say?"

"I'm pretty sure we got things worked out," I replied, leaning back against the couch he was sitting at. "I'm gonna ask Kaiba to buy me a house tomorrow."

"And what will you use as leverage?" Alec asked.

"What about if I tell Kaiba if he buys me a house, I'll act like his dog for a day or two?" I asked.

"Considering it's Kaiba, I'm pretty sure that'll work," Alec opinionated. "Do you think, if you get the house, I could get a room there?"

"What's wrong with this house?"

"Yeah, there was one consequence of telling my parents about you and your position at Sparkx. They wanted me to get some top-secret stuff for them, but I refused because you're my best friend. So, they're refusing to pay for this house anymore."

"Of course you can stay with me, my poor homeless friend!" I hugged Alec tightly before I heard Shawn walk up behind us.

"Sorry to interrupt this touching scene, but there's some guy on the phone for you, boss," Shawn said, holding out Alec's house phone.

"It's my dad," I said, looking at the number. Seeing the look Alec gave me, I put it on speaker phone. "Dad?"

"Sweetheart, I need to see you," my dad's voice came over the phone. "Please, you can bring your friends, but I need to see my little girl."

"Dad, I can't," I said, my voice tensing a bit when he called me his little girl. "I'll talk to you later." Before he could say anything else, I hung up and handed the phone back to Shawn. "I hate my life," I groaned, falling back over the edge of the couch. My legs stayed over the back of the couch as my back landed on both cushion and Alec's legs.

"Aw, don't be like that," Alec said, playing with the ends of my hair. "Without life, you wouldn't be best friends with a gorgeous guy like myself."

"Still modest as ever, I see," Shawn grinned, leaning over the back of the couch.

"That's what I keep saying," I agreed, laughing as I turned myself around and stood up. "Alec, you and Shawn can stay up a bit more but I'm gonna go to bed."

"In my bed?" Alec asked hopefully, leaning over the couch to look after me.

"Nice try, dude," I smirked, looking at him over my shoulder. "I'm sleeping on the floor next to your bed."

"You're so mean, Em," Alec said, giving me his best pouty face. Sticking my tongue out at him, I walked up to his room and closed the door behind me.

"You and the boss are really close, aren't you?" Shawn asked, looking down at Alec.

"That's for sure," Alec replied, grinning slightly. "I know more about her then anyone else and the same goes for her knowing about me."

"Before I forget," Shawn started, moving to sit beside Alec, "why exactly did your parents think I was gay?"

"Because we were always hanging around each other," Alec explained. "I knew you weren't gay, so I didn't really care."

"Well, that's the problem," Shawn said. "I am."

"What?" Alec yelled.

"I'm gay." Before Alec could do anything, Shawn kissed him.

"Dude!" Alec yelled, pushing him away before jumping over the edge of the couch. "What the hell?"

"What's wrong?" I asked, coming down the stairs when I heard Alec's yelling.

"Fire him!" Alec said, glaring at the blonde teenager. "Do it and I'll explain later!"

"Okay, I trust you know what you're doing, Alec," I said. "Shawn, you're fired."

"Fine, but you'll regret doing that, Alec," Shawn threatened, giving both of us a death glare before stomping out of the house.

"Okay, what's the deal?" I asked as Alec followed me upstairs, rubbing his mouth against his sleeve.

"My parents were right," Alec replied. "He's gay and I'm pretty sure he's in love with me."

"Okay, then, I now had a reason to fire him," I said, changing into my pajamas. "But this'll mean I'll need to hire a replacement for him. A secretary, as well."

"Secretary?" Alec repeated as I texted Ross to get some interviews lined up for tomorrow.

"I really need to get one," I told him as I pulled a couple blankets from the closet onto the floor. "Now, good night, Alec. Tomorrow, I might get a house and a few new employees."

"Happy birthday, Em," Alec said, as I fell asleep on the floor. Kneeling down, he gently kissed my forehead before getting into his own bed and falling asleep.


	33. Going Back to Joey's Apartment

The minute I woke up, I left Alec a note telling him where I was going and changed before I started walked toward Kaiba's house. "Please be awake," I thought, knocking on the front door. "Please be awake."

"Pup?" Kaiba asked, opening the door. "What are you doing here?"

"How early do you get up?" I asked back, looking at the black turtleneck and black pants Kaiba was wearing.

"5," Kaiba stated matter-of-factly. "Now, why are you here, pup?"

"I have a big favor to ask you," I said. "I need a house. Completely furnished if possible. Actually, the house that's being sold across the street, if you please."

"Why?"

"Well, Joey got kicked out of his house and Alec's parents are refusing to pay for his house anymore, so we all need a place to live."

"Why can't you live here?"

"Because there's no way I'm ever living here again. Please?"

"What will you do if I agree?"

"I'll be your completely obedient dog for a day."

"Alright, I'll do it. I'll expect you here tomorrow morning at 6 a.m."

Grinning, I watched as Kaiba strode over to where the house was being shown. My grin grew even more when Kaiba named a price for the house, the realtor's faces completely priceless. "It is a nice house, though," I thought, watching Kaiba walk back over. "3 floors, 4 bedrooms, 2.5 bathrooms."

"Pup, come by later and it'll be ready," Kaiba told me.

"Thank you so much!" I exclaimed, hugging him tightly. "Tell Jay I said hi!" And with that, I ran off toward Sparkx Industries.

"Whoa, settle down!" Ross said as I ran in and almost ran into him. "What's the big hurry?"

"I'm just really happy," I replied, bouncing up and down. "But I need more energy right now. Moka?" The secretary handed me a Mountain Dew: Code Red then went back to what she was doing.

"Snack?" Ross asked, pointing at my soda as we got in the elevator.

"Breakfast," I corrected, taking a big gulp. "Did you get interviews lined up?"

"Actually, we've already filled those positions," Ross told me. "I interviewed two boys for the positions. They're qualified and capable, so I hired them." We walked into my office and I saw a boy with brown and orange hair and another boy with teal hair sitting on my couch, both standing up as we walked in. "Emilee, this is Jesse Anderson, your new mechanic and Jaden Yuki, your new secretary."

"Nice job," I said, looking the two teenagers up and down. "Jesse, follow Ross and he'll show you what to do. Jaden, come with me." As Jesse and Ross headed downstairs, I showed Jaden his desk right outside my office. "Calls may come nonstop sometimes," I told him as he sat down, "but I'm sure you'll be able to handle it. Do you understand what you need to do for this job?"

"Yes, Miss Hitachiin," Jaden replied. As if on cue, the phone rang. "Sparkx Industries," Jaden said, answering it. "Miss Hitachiin's office." He listened for a second before writing something down on a notepad. "Thank you, good-bye." Jaden dug around in a few drawers before pulling out a planner. "You have a meeting set up for the day after tomorrow at 11 with Razz Co.," he told me, jotting down the time and company in the planner before setting it back in a drawer.

"I like you," I said, grinning. "You might be just what I need right now." Walking back into my office, I changed into my uniform and pulled out my deck. "I'll be back in a few hours," I said as I walked out of my office, hooking my deck case to the back of my pants and heading for the stairs.

Jaden nodded, then went back to looking through files on the computer on his desk. "Miss Hitachiin," Jaden said before I could disappear down the stairs, "why are there no files on the projects for floor 23?"

"I'll explain later," I replied before disappearing down the stairs. Before I stopped on the 21st floor for my first 'class' of the day, I wondered what I was going to tell Jaden. "It'll be a lot easier if I just tell him," I muttered, opening the door to where I was going to have my Mechanics class. "I'll have to give him a code and match his voice to the computer, though."

"You ready, Emilee?" Night asked as I walked up to him.

"As ready as I'll ever be," I replied, then noticed Jesse standing behind the 21-year-old. "What's Jesse doing here? I thought Ross was showing him what to do."

"He told me to show him what to do," Night said. "And right now, he's gonna be helping me with your class."

"I'd like to thank ya'll for givin' me and Jay this job," Jesse said in his southern accent.

"No prob," I said as Night took my arm and led me toward computers littering the far wall of the room. "Cute accent, by the way."

"If you're done talking," Night said, pulling a tool belt around my waist, "this needs fixing. Jesse and I will be watching to see if you do it right."

"What's wrong with it?" I asked, my fingers flying across the multiple keyboards.

"That is part of your pop quiz," Night smirked, crossing his arms. "You are to find and fix the problem by the time class is over or you fail for today." Glaring back at him, I touched a few places on the computer screens surrounding me before crawling under them.

1 hour later, I had completely fixed the computer and added a few of my own personal touches to the programming as well. "Very good," Night complimented as I stood up and brushed some dirt off my pants. "You pass."

"Thank you," I said, grinning. "I need to go, but keep working. And Jesse, I hope you'll help finish the stuff Night will get fired for if he doesn't finish it."

"Yes, Miss Hitachiin," Jesse replied as I walked out.

~4 hours later~

Once all my classes were done, I went back to my office and changed into jeans and a T-shirt before heading out to Jaden's desk. "Miss Hitachiin, a Mr. Mastan wished to talk to you as soon as you got back," Jaden said as I walked into the elevator. "He's waiting for you at your guardian's house."

"Kaiba's?" I asked, tilting my head to the side slightly.

"Mr. Kaiba turned 18 yesterday," Jaden replied. "As of yesterday, you are now under his care."

"Thanks," I said before heading down to the 23rd floor. Swiping my id card and punching in my code, I programmed another code for Jaden and walked into the room. "Computer, analyze the voice patterns of this voice," I ordered, pulling a small recorder out of my pocket.

"As of yesterday, you are now under his care," Jaden's voice came over the recorder.

"Voice patterns analyzed," the computer said in its emotionless voice.

"That voice belongs to Jaden Yuki, my new secretary," I explained. "His voice will be able to control basic functions on this floor."

"Will that be all, Emilee?" the computer asked as I pressed a few buttons on a computer screen to save the changes.

"Yeah, shut down until tomorrow," I ordered, walking out and down to the lobby. Quickly walking to Alec's house, I grabbed him and the car and, picking up Joey at Yugi's house, drove to the house Kaiba had bought me.

"This is what Kaiba got you?" Alec asked in disbelief as I parked the car in the garage before walking in the front door.

"Yeah," I replied, leading them upstairs. "Come on, I'll show you your rooms."

"Sis!"

I spun around and caught Jay as he launched himself into my arms. "Hey, little bro," I said, grinning as I set him down. "Did you get all settled in your room?"

"Yeah, it's awesome!" Jay exclaimed, practically bouncing up and down. "Can I go hang out with Mokuba for a while?"

"Of course you can, sweetie," I replied. "Be back before dark, Jay!"

"Your brother really is like you," Joey commented as I opened a door on the left side of the hall we were in.

"That's what our mother said before we got separated," I said. "Here, Joey, this is your room." The bedroom was furnished for a teenage boy, though there were a few Red-Eyes Black Dragon items lying around. "I'll be back as soon as I can."

"Where's my room?" Alec asked.

"I think it's this one," I said, opening the door next to mine.

"Well, it looks basically like my room at home," Alec said, looking around. "Can I see your room?"

"Sure," I replied, going out of Alec's room and going into my own. The room looked like the one I had at Kaiba's house, but there were Duel Monster stuffed animals all around the room. "They're so cute!" I squealed, hugging a Red-Eyes Black Dragon plushie close.

"You are such a girl," Alec teased as I set the Red-Eyes plushie down on my bed.

"You're just jealous 'cause you can't pull that off," I smirked before walking downstairs and across the street to Kaiba's house.

"I could if I didn't want to be labeled as being gay," Alec replied, hitting me lightly on the arm. The minute we walked into Kaiba's house, we were immediately confronted with Damien.

"Ah, Miss Hitachiin, I was wondering when you would arrive," Damien smirked, crossing his arms.

"Listen, Mastan, if you want to talk, go across the street and wait at my new house," I growled, glaring at him. "I'll be right there. Alec, show him the way." As Alec led Damien out of Kaiba's house, I found Kaiba sitting in his study. "Seto?" I asked as I walked up to him.

"Yes, pup?" he asked back without even looking up at me.

"I want to thank you for buying that house for me, Jay, Joey, and Alec," I replied. "And for furnishing the whole thing."

"Make sure to be here at 6 tomorrow morning," Kaiba said as I walked out of his study and his house, heading toward my own.

"I'll think about what he's gonna make me do later, I have bigger problems to deal with right now," I muttered, walking into my house and into the living room where Damien was sitting on the couch. "Thanks, Alec," I said as the teenager started to walk upstairs. "I'll talk to ya later."

"Miss Hitachiin, I'd like you to meet my new partner," Damien said, gesturing at a man standing in the shadows.

"And why would I want that?" I asked, crossing my arms.

"Oh, I'm sure you'd like to meet him," Damien said smugly, as a young blonde teenager stood behind him.

"Shawn," I growled, glaring at both of them. "Shawn Stefanoes."

"What's up, boss?" Shawn smirked. "Oh, I'm sorry, you fired me. You're not my boss anymore. So I should be saying, what's up, you little brat. And how's Alec, by the way?"

"You go near him and I swear to God I'm gonna kill you," I threatened. "Now why are you two here?"

"I've come to offer you a job at my company if you hand over Sparkx Industries to me," Damien said, crossing his legs and lacing his hands together over them.

"Let's see," I said, pretending to weigh the options. "A job at Flare Corporation that will inevitably fail or being CEO of Sparkx Industries, one of the most successful companies in the world. Hmm, hard choice. I'm afraid I'm gonna have to go with the second option."

"Sis!" Jay exclaimed, running up to me. "Sis, I went to see if Joey would play with me and he's gone!"

"Calm down, Jay," I comforted, kneeling down to his level. "Joey probably just went to see cousin Yugi and the rest of his friends. I'm sure Alec will want to play with you, though. Go ask him." Grinning, Jay nodded and hugged me before running back upstairs. I turned back toward Damien and Shawn and started to get up when a hand went onto my shoulder, keeping me on my knees.

"I still think you look better like this," Damien smirked, his grip on my shoulder tightening when I tried to move away.

"What do you mean, Damien?" Shawn asked, standing beside the 25-year-old.

"Look at her, Shawn," Damien replied, smirking down at me as I glared up at him. "This is where she belongs. On her knees in front of her superiors, in front of her masters."

"You are not my superiors and you are not my masters," I growled, finally succeeding in pushing his hand off my shoulder. I stood up and opened the front door. "Now get out before I kick you out myself."

"I'll be seeing you, Miss Hitachiin," Damien said, grinning smugly before taking Shawn and walking out of the house.

"Alec," I said, walking upstairs.

"Whatcha need?" Alec asked back, poking his head out in the hallway.

"Please keep Jay busy until he goes to sleep," I said. "I need some time to think about what I'm gonna do about Mastan." Walking into my room, I noticed a couple stuffed animals that I hadn't noticed before. On my bed next to my pillows were stuffed animals of Joey, Alec, and Kaiba. "I love these way too much," I thought, picking up my Red-Eyes Black Dragon plushie. Walking out on the balcony connected to my room, I climbed down the tree growing right outside and pulled out my deck.

"How am I gonna deal with 2 psychos from Flare after me," I muttered, summoning Blaze and Burst. The two dragons formed a protective circle around me and laid down as I sunk down to my knees, holding my Red-Eyes stuffed animal close to my chest. "I've only got two eyes, two hands, and two feet. I can't keep either of them from trying to get my brother or my friends." Sighing, I leaned back against Blaze's body and brought my knees up to my chest.

Suddenly, Burst perked up and lifted his head, growling softly. "What's wrong, Burst?" I asked, standing up with the plushie still in my arms. I looked under his neck and saw Kaiba walking toward me.

"Pup, would you kindly tell your dragon to step down?" Kaiba asked, stopping in front of Burst. Blaze, on the other hand, seemed to like Kaiba and growled playfully at him.

"You two need to switch personalities," I muttered, placing a hand on Burst's snout. "Come on, boy, calm down. Kaiba's not gonna hurt you." Burst nuzzled his head against my side and laid his head down on the ground next to my feet. "What's up, Seto?"

"I came to give you your outfit for tomorrow," Kaiba replied, holding out a small pile of folded clothes.

"I'm kinda afraid to ask," I started, watching as Blaze lifted the clothes up on my balcony before bringing his head back down, "but what outfit is it?"

"You'll find out tomorrow morning," Kaiba smirked, turning back to head to his mansion. "See you at 6, pup."

"You jerk," I muttered as Burst lifted his head to my chin. "What am I gonna do now, Burst?" It was starting to get dark, so I closed my eyes as Blaze reached his head around and pushed on my back. "Come on, boys. Let's go find Joey." The Red-Eyes plushie still held tightly in my arms, I walked down the street, Blaze and Burst following me closely still full-sized. "Blaze, Burst, go fly above me," I ordered, looking back at them. "If someone sees you, I'm gonna have to do a lot of explaining."

Both dragons nuzzled against my sides before taking off and circling above me. "Now, where's Joey's house again?" I thought, coming to a four-way intersection. "Oh, yeah! Right, left, left, left, right, second apartment from the left on the 2nd floor." Following the instructions I thought of, I was about to knock on the apartment door when I heard a loud crash from inside.

"I thought I kicked you out!" I heard an older man yell and what sounded like a bottle breaking against a wall.

"Calm down, dad!" I heard Joey yell back. "I just need some school stuff and then I'm leaving!" I heard a few more crashes before a cry of pain and what sounded like a person hitting the floor.

"Joey!" I thought, desperately looking at the door for any weaknesses, dropping my stuffed animal to the side. Finding a couple near the hinges, I drew my foot back and kicked with all my strength. The door broke in after a couple tries and I saw a man standing over the almost unconscious Joey.

"Who the hell are you?" the man, whom I assumed to be Joey's dad, demanded, turning toward me.

I didn't answer, just rushed over to Joey and helped him stand up. Suddenly, a foot connected with my shoulder and I was knocked back to the floor. I looked up and saw Joey's dad looking ready to fight. Not wanting to hear his voice, I blocked it out and resorted to reading his lips. "He wants to know who I am and why I'm interfering with his personal business," I thought, rubbing my shoulder to dull the pain resonating from it.

"Em, g-get out," Joey said weakly, looking over at me. "I can handle this."

"I'm not leaving without you," I told him through clenched teeth, helping him stand up. I looked back up at Joey's dad just in time to see him swing a punch at me. Quickly dodging, my foot shot out and kicked him in the stomach. Bringing my fingers to my mouth, I gave a sharp whistle and helped Joey out the door before his dad could recover.

"Burst, take Joey and this home and try to get Alec," I ordered, helping Joey onto the Blue-Eyes's back and handing him my stuffed animal. "Blaze, stay on the ground and wait for a second."

"Em, my deck and my backpack, they're in my room," Joey said weakly before Burst took off flying back home.

I sucked in a deep breath before facing the apartment door again. Racing into Joey's room, I quickly found his deck and his backpack. Slinging the backpack over my shoulder, I stuck the deck in the front pocket of my jeans before running back out to where Blaze was waiting. I could hear Joey's dad start to recover and curse, so I stuck Joey's deck in his backpack and secured it to Blaze's neck. "Blaze, go straight home," I ordered. "I'll be back as soon as I can." Blaze roared his protest, but one look from me and he flew off. Hearing the curses grow louder and louder, I hopped over the banister for the 2nd floor and landed in a crouching position on the concrete. I started running as soon as I got my balance back and tried to get as far away as I could.

About 5 minutes later, I stopped to try and catch my breath as I leaned against a tree growing near the street. "That's why Joey had that bruise on his neck," I thought, remembering when I'd seen a purplish mark on his neck near his shoulder. "Makes sense. Drunk men are bad news for their kids." After waiting a couple more minutes, I started walking down the street, my hands stuck in my pockets. "Mom," I thought as I neared my house, "I wish you were still here. Maybe you could figure out what I keep feeling when I hear my dad's name."

"Hey, Em!"

I looked toward the sound of the voice and saw Alec waving at me through his bedroom window. "Be right there, Alec!" I called, running the rest of the way and up the stairs.

"What happened to him?" Alec asked as I walked into Joey's room. "Burst just set him down on the bed and then Blaze left a backpack. What's going on?"

"He just needs rest," I explained. "He'll be better in the morning." "I hope," I added in my thoughts. Telling Alec and Jay good-night, I walked into my own room and saw Blaze and Burst sitting outside my window. "Boys, get back in your cards," I ordered, holding out their cards. As the two dragons disappeared in flashes of blue and red, I grabbed the Red-Eyes plushie and the outfit Kaiba had left on the balcony and walked back into the room. Setting both items on my dresser, I changed into a pair of black shorts and a black tanktop and crawled into bed. I didn't give Kaiba, Joey, his dad, or even Damien and Shawn another thought as I set my alarm and fell asleep.


	34. Emilee's Dog Days

**Okay, well, I have the next chapter after this half-way written, but I have a lot of other stuff going on in my life right now. Reviews make me happy and make me want to write, so that'll help bunches if I get reviews. : )**

My alarm woke me at 10 till 6 in the morning, the annoying beeping echoing through my room. "Stupid alarm," I muttered, slapping a hand down on the snooze button. "Stupid rich brat for making me be at his house at 6 in the morning." Slipping out of bed, I stumbled over to the dresser where I'd left my outfit and quickly changed before looking at myself in a mirror. "You've got to be kidding me," I muttered. I was in a pair of brown jeans, brown combat boots, and a brown tanktop. Turning around, I saw that on the back of the shirt were 4 words in black. "Belongs to Seto Kaiba," I read. "Oh, when I get my hands on him, he's so dead!"

Heading downstairs to the kitchen, I tried to calm down as I made eggs, bacon, and pancakes for the boys, leaving them on plates on the counter with a note saying what times to heat them if they got cold. Slipping my deck case on the back of my pants, I walked outside and across the street to Kaiba's house. Knocking a few times, I rubbed my arms to get some heat running through them before Kaiba's butler opened the doors.

"Ah, Miss Hitachiin," the butler said. "Mr. Kaiba wishes you to go to his office this morning. He also said that you are to wear this if you get cold. Good day." He handed me one of Kaiba's trench coats, black for a change, before closing the door.

Sighing, I slipped on the coat, grateful for its warmth. I walked the 15 blocks to KaibaCorp and reached into the pocket of the trench coat I was wearing to find a KaibaCorp id card for me. Showing it to the guards at the entrance, I walked inside and to the elevator. Riding up the multiple floors, I walked out at Kaiba's office level.

"Excuse me," I said, walking up to the secretary just outside his office, "is Set—I mean, is Mr. Kaiba here?"

"Do you have an appointment?" she asked, giving me a fake smile. She was in a tight-fitting shirt and skirt and clearly Ms. Deliah Keyan, according to her nameplate, just wanted to have sex with Kaiba.

"Uh, no," I replied, shaking my head to clear my thoughts. "But he should be expecting me so if you'll excuse me…"

"I'm sorry, but you're not allowed in there," Deliah said, grabbing one of the sleeves of Kaiba's coat. "At least, not dressed like that. Do you know how to shop for your size?"

"I wasn't ordered to wear a coat," I said, seeing that the sleeves of the trench coat covered my hands. "This is Set—I mean, Mr. Kaiba's. Man, I am not used to calling him that."

"I'm sorry, little girl, but maybe if you get your parents and make an appointment, Mr. Kaiba will have time for you," Deliah told me before going back to playing solitaire on her computer.

"Fine, if you won't tell him I'm here, then I'll tell him myself," I muttered, walking up to Kaiba's door.

"I said no!" Deliah scolded, pulling me away from the door. "Mr. Kaiba has no time for a little street urchin like you!"

"Ms. Keyan!" Kaiba yelled, swinging his office door open. "What are you yelling about?"

"I'm sorry, Mr. Kaiba," Deliah apologized, letting go of my coat collar. "This girl said you would be expecting her but she doesn't have an appointment. I was just getting rid of her."

"Puppy!" Kaiba ordered, turning his glare to me. "In my office now!" Seeing the look on his face, I immediately ran and stood in front of the desk. "Ms. Keyan, if she comes by again, she is to be immediately let into my office."

"Yes, Mr. Kaiba," Deliah said, bowing her head slightly before Kaiba slammed the door shut behind him. "How did that girl get to be so friendly with Kaiba?" she thought, tapping her fingers on the desk. "She's even calling him by his first name. I know the coat she was wearing, it was his. And, he seems to have a little pet name for her. I'd watch my step if I were her."

"You okay, Seto?" I asked as he sat back down in his chair at his desk. "You seem a little stressed."

"For today, you will address me as Master and nothing else," Kaiba ordered, looking up at me. "Until I call for you, wait outside my office. I have a meeting to go to."

"Yes, Master," I replied, gulping. I quickly walked out of his office and to a chair sitting against the wall across from Deliah's desk, watching as Kaiba stopped in front of me.

"Pup, give me your deck," Kaiba ordered, holding out his hand. "You will not be allowed to duel today."

Hesitating ever so slightly, I unhooked my case from the back of my jeans and handed it to Kaiba. "Anything else, Master?" I asked, looking up at him.

"No, stay here," Kaiba ordered before walking to the elevator. "And when I call for you, you will come to me."

"Yes, Master," I mumbled as Kaiba got into the elevator, the doors sliding shut. As soon as I couldn't hear the elevator anymore, I let out the breath I hadn't realized I'd been holding.

2 hours later, Kaiba still wasn't back and I'd already gone over all the cards in my deck 43 times. Suddenly, the elevator doors opened, but instead of Kaiba, Jay came running out. "Sis!" he exclaimed. "Sis, you've got to help me!"

"What's wrong, Jay?" I asked worriedly, ignoring the glare Deliah was giving me. "Did something happen to Joey or Alec?"

"N-No," Jay hiccupped, tears starting to run down his cheeks. "I-I tried to summon C-Coo, but he wouldn't c-come out!"

"Oh, sweetie, sweetie," I comforted, hugging him. "Don't cry, don't cry. Let me see the card. Maybe I can do something." Jay calmed down a little bit as he handed me his Kuriboh card. Running my hand over it a couple times, Coo finally appeared in front of me.

"S-Sis, am I broken?" Jay hiccupped.

"No, no, baby," I comforted, handing him back his card. "Coo is probably just tired right now. Next time, before you summon him, wait a day or so."

"Thanks, sis!" Jay exclaimed happily, hugging me tightly. "I'm gonna go play with Alec!"

"Don't get hurt!" I called after him as he and Coo disappeared into the elevator. "Being an older sister is a lot harder than I thought," I muttered, slumping down in my chair. "That and taking care of two 16-year-old boys."

"So, what's your name, sweetheart?" Deliah asked with fake sweetness, looking up at me as I sat sideways in my chair with my legs hanging over one of the arms.

"Hitachiin," I replied, glancing over at her. "Emilee Hitachiin."

"Do you have a job, sweetheart?" Deliah questioned, raising an eyebrow at my name. "A job at a local fast-food place or an arcade maybe?"

"Not even close," I corrected. "I work at Sparkx Industries."

"And why are you here?" Deliah asked.

"None of your business," I muttered, looking at my shoes.

"That girl is getting on my last nerve," Deliah thought, glaring at me.

Suddenly, the elevator doors opened again and Kaiba walked out. "Pup!" he yelled, grabbing my arm. "In my office! Now!"

"What's wrong with you?" I yelled at Kaiba as he shut and locked the door behind us. "Master," I added after a second thought.

"Nothing," Kaiba growled, finally letting my arm go. "I've just had to sit through a meeting with two complete idiots for 2 hours now. By the way, why are you still wearing my coat?"

"I was cold," I said, shrugging. "It's warm."

Kaiba held out his hand and I reluctantly shrugged out of the coat and handed it to him. "Pup, I left my coffee down in the board room," he said. "Go get it and refill it."

"Yes, Master," I replied, turning for the door.

"Pup, are you forgetting something?" Kaiba asked. "There was one part of your outfit that I forgot to give you yesterday." He held out the ears to my old uniform, smirking as I took them and slipped them on. "You may go."

Muttering curses, I walked out of his office and headed down to the board room 21 floors down. Grabbing the cup sitting on the table, I quickly refilled it and headed back up to Kaiba's office. "Here you go," I said, setting it on his desk.

"Pup, why exactly is this card vibrating?" Kaiba asked, holding up my Blue-Eyes White Dragon card.

"Well," I started, shifting my weight from foot to foot, "when spirits want to be released from their cards, they kinda vibrate until they get tired or get released. Since it's Burst that wants out, I could try to teach him to like you."

Kaiba sighed and handed me the card, waiting as I summoned the Blue-Eyes in its miniature form. "Master," I said, kneeling down to Burst's level, "come here please." Kaiba got up from his desk and walked over to me. The Blue-Eyes started growling as soon as he saw Kaiba. "Burst, just smell his clothes. I'm sure you'll like him." Burst growled softly, but walked over to Kaiba and started sniffing his pant leg. "Master, try petting him."

Kaiba hesitated slightly, knowing full well the power the Blue-Eyes White Dragon held, but reached down and placed a hand on Burst's head. Burst looked up at him and his tail started moving back and forth. "Yes!" I exclaimed, punching my fist in the air. "I did it! He likes you!"

"Now put him back in his card," Kaiba ordered, standing up straight again as he moved back to his desk.

"Fine," I muttered, holding out Burst's card. "Burst, I'll let you out later, kay?" The Blue-Eyes nuzzled his head against my stomach before disappearing in a flash of blue light.

"Puppy," Kaiba said, directing my attention back at him. "What is that bruise on your shoulder from?"

I looked down and saw the bruise that I'd gotten when Joey's dad had kicked my shoulder last night. "Uh, nothing," I lied, gulping as Kaiba got up from his desk. I was still on the ground so I backed up until I hit the door. Reaching up, I quickly unlocked and opened the door.

"Pup, get back in here," Kaiba ordered as I backed away until I hit the wall next to the elevator. I covered the bruise with my hand and stood up, my back still against the wall as Kaiba stood in front of me. "Pup, are you disobeying your master?" he asked, his blue eyes locking onto my violet ones.

"N-No, Master," I stuttered. "It's just that…I can take care of this bruise. It's nothing. I just need to see someone and I'll be good."

"Who gave you this, pup?" Kaiba asked, moving my hand to get a better look at my shoulder. "Tell me and I'll have him arrested for touching what is mine."

"So he owns the little brat, huh?" Deliah thought, watching the whole conversation as she took a few notes.

"You don't own me," I said, yelping in pain when Kaiba poked the middle of my bruise.

"You signed a contract," Kaiba told me, smirking slightly. "If you'd read the fine print, you would have seen that until I decide to release you, you are under my control and therefore belong to me. I am also your guardian, so that strengthens the contract. Now who gave you that bruise?"

"Joey's dad," I finally admitted. "It's nothing…doesn't hurt that much."

"That man will be arrested for touching what is mine," Kaiba growled again as I moved my hand over my shoulder again.

"Please don't," I asked, taking Kaiba's arm. "He didn't know what he was doing."

"Pup, would you like to go home?" Kaiba asked, turning to look at me as I nodded. "If you follow my orders tomorrow, I'll allow you to go home right now. I have clothes for you to change into in my office."

"Thanks, Seto," I said, hugging him before heading into his office to change. I found a small pile of folded clothes on a table and changed into the jeans and blue long-sleeved shirt, noticing that they were Kaiba's. I kept my brown combat boots on as I set my uniform on his desk and walked out of the office.

"Here, pup," Kaiba said, handing me the black trench coat I'd worn when I'd first arrived this morning.

"Do I get my deck back?" I asked, looking up at him as I slipped the coat on.

"On one condition," Kaiba replied. "You can get it back tomorrow night or you can get it back right now if I get to kiss you."

I noticed Deliah's death glare directed at me when she heard the condition and gulped. "What will it take just to get Blaze and Burst back?" I asked.

"Since you were here for about 4 hours, I suppose I can give them to you," Kaiba replied, pulling them out of my deck.

"I'll see ya later, Seto!" I called over my shoulder, sticking the two cards in the back pocket of my jeans as I raced down the stairs to the ground level. As I walked dwon the street, my phone started ringing. "Hello?" I asked, answering it.

"Em, I gotta pick up a couple things from home," Joey's voice came over the phone, "but Jay wants me to duel. Can you grab my duel disk and the blue jacket in my closet? Dad should be at work, but you can go in through the window around the back. There's a fire escape there."

"You sure your dad won't be there?" I asked, changing directions so I headed toward Joey's old apartment. "I've had enough drunk fathers for a lifetime."

"He shouldn't," Joey assured. "I'll make it up to ya later. Love ya!"

Sighing, I snapped the phone shut and put it back in my jeans pocket. Walking around to the back of Joey's apartment building, I climbed up the fire escape and through his bedroom window. Closing the window behind me, I quickly grabbed Joey's duel disk and school jacket, going back to the window only to find it locked from the outside. "Great," I muttered, rolling up the sleeves of Kaiba's trench coat.

I snuck out of Joey's room and toward the front door when I heard something moving behind me. Looking over my shoulder, I saw Joey's dad asleep on the couch. Breathing a sigh of relief, I quickly got out of the apartment only to be stopped by one of the other tenants.

"I've never seen you around here before," he said, then noticed the duel disk and jacket in my arms. "Are you stealing from this apartment?"

"N-No!" I exclaimed nervously. "My name is Emilee Hitachiin. I date the person who lives here's son, Joey Wheeler. Joey got kicked out and he wanted me to pick up a couple things since he was busy."

"Nice try," the tenant smirked, reaching out to grab me.

"Didn't want to have to do this," I muttered, quickly summoning Burst from my back pocket. Using the tenant's momentary distraction, I tightened my grip on the items in my hands and jumped over the balcony. I landed in one of the junctions on Burst's neck and almost fell over, a simple movement of the dragon's head helping steady me. "Let's go home, Burst," I said as the tenant stared before starting to move toward the balcony.

I looked over my shoulder at the apartment building as Burst took off flying toward our house. "Burst," I said, leaning forward on his neck, "do you think I made the right choice? Summoning you in front of someone I can't trust?" Burst roared as we kept flying. "I hope you're right," I said softly as Burst landed in front of our house.

"'Bout time you got home," Alec smirked as I slid off Burst and sent him back to his card, setting Joey's stuff in the house through an open window. "Kaiba must have let you off early today. What gives?"

"We have a deal," I explained, walking with him down the street toward Sparkx Industries. "I can go home today and I follow his orders tomorrow. Simple. Now, you wanna go back home or come with me to pick up a few things at Sparkx?"

"Go with you," Alec replied, grinning. "What do you have to pick up?"

"Just a few reports to sign," I said. "And I have to drop off my homework with Moka so I don't get in trouble with Ross."

Alec smiled and pulled out the mp3 player in his back pocket. Handing me a headphone, he took the other and started up 'Bad Girlfriend' by Theory of a Deadman. Lacing his fingers with mine, we walked down the street and eventually, into Sparkx Industries. I handed Moka the folder of papers in my back pocket, exchanging them for a small stack of reports before Alec and I walked out and back toward our house again. "So, whatcha gonna do for the rest of the day?" Alec asked, swinging my hand he was holding back and forth.

"Promise you won't tell Joey, Seto, or Jay?" I asked back as I tossed the reports in my back pocket into the window and onto the couch.

"I'm gonna regret this, but…I promise," Alec replied, crossing his heart with his free hand.

"I told my dad I'd meet him for dinner tonight," I said, looking down at the ground. "I couldn't help it. He sounded really desperate on the message he left on my phone and I couldn't take it anymore."

"Where're you meeting him?" Alec asked as we walked inside and up to my room.

"A place called 'The Vine' downtown," I replied, walking over to my closet. Making Alec turn around, I changed out of Kaiba's clothes and into a pair of grey jeans that had holes running from the knees down and a white T-shirt with a Red-Eyes Black Dragon twisting around it, courtesy of Alec.

"So are you taking the car, skateboarding, or walking?" Alec asked as I pulled on my black combat boots.

"Debating whether or not to skateboard or walk," I replied, opening a drawer. I pulled on a black digital watch with a Blue-Eyes White Dragon twisting around it, also courtesy of Alec. "Help please?" I asked, holding up a necklace. Alec walked behind me and hooked the necklace on and pulled my hair out from under it, the little Winged Kuriboh hanging from it resting just above my chest.

"You can take my board for luck, if you want," Alec said, grabbing his skateboard as we both walked downstairs and to the front door.

"Thanks, Alec," I said, kissing his cheek before taking his board and checking the time on my watch. It was almost 7 at night. "I'll be back as soon as I can." Tucking Blaze and Burst's cards in my pocket, I started off down the street on Alec's skateboard, my hands in the pockets of my jeans.

10 minutes later, I stood outside of The Vine with Alec's skateboard under my arm. It looked like a fancy restaurant, but I really didn't care. I didn't really have any fancy clothes and I wasn't planning on getting any anytime soon. Taking a deep breath, I walked in the front door and up to the waiter standing at the podium just inside the door.

"Yes, can I help you?" he asked, then looked me up and down. "I'm sorry, but you must have the wrong place. Burger World is just down the street."

"Funny," I muttered, rolling my eyes. "Is there a Hitachiin, party of two on your list?"

"Let me see," the waiter said, looking over the list in front of him. "There's a Hitachiin, party of four."

"That's me," I half-lied, drawing his gaze back to me as I wondered who the other three were. "I'm part of that four."

"May I see some id, please?" he asked, wanting to know if I was who I said I was.

"Just a sec," I replied, digging through my pockets. "Will this do?"

I handed him my Sparkx Industries id card only to see his eyes widen as he looked between me and my card. "Right this way, Miss Hitachiin," the waiter finally said, handing me back my id card. I followed him to a 4-person table, the only 3 people sitting at it the exact people I did not need in my life at the moment.

"Thank you for coming, Miss Hitachiin," Damien smirked, Shawn sitting beside him and Nick sitting beside an empty seat apparently meant for me.

"Why are you here, Mastan?" I growled as I leaned forward with my elbows on the table, Alec's skateboard resting on the ground below my feet.

"We have a proposition for you," Shawn replied, a slight grin on his face. I didn't trust any of the people sitting at the table and they all seemed to know it. "You sign Sparkx Industries over to me and Damien and we'll leave you and you're little reject family alone."

"What do you mean reject family?" I repeated, glaring at the blonde.

"You honestly think you can call those people a proper family?" Shawn asked, raising an eyebrow. "You've got an 11-year-old brother, a boy who doesn't know what he's missing out on…" That statement made me want to burst out in laughter but I bit down on the inside of my cheek to contain it. "…a boyfriend who is a complete idiot, and a multi-billionaire and his little brother. All rejects in my opinion."

"What did you say about Alec again?" I asked, wanting to get my laughter out in the best way possible.

"A boy who doesn't know what he's missing out on," Shawn repeated.

"Dude, you are so clueless!" I managed to get out through my laughter. "Alec's straight and way out of your league! Why don't you try for someone simple? Like a homeless dude who has no one else?"

"Shut up, you little brat!" Shawn snapped, his face growing slightly pink. "You're nothing but a little street urchin who doesn't know what the hell she's doing or what she's talking about!"

"Yet for some reason, I'm the only one who can refuse your little threats," I smirked. "So apparently, I'm pretty important."

"Emilee, have you seen your father?" Nick asked, drawing my glare to him next.

"Don't call me that," I growled. "If you're siding with those bastards, then I'm not calling you my uncle. And if all you wanted to do was take my company, then I'm leaving." I started to get up when someone placed their hands on my shoulders and forced me to stay in my seat.

"I'm afraid you won't be going anywhere until we get what we want," Damien smirked, lacing his fingers together on the table.

"Let me guess," I said, half-glaring at him. "You want Sparkx Industries." I could see Damien talking but I blocked his voice out as my hand snaked down to my pocket, grabbing the one card I knew Kaiba didn't know I had. "Kuri," I thought, running my thumb over my Winged Kuriboh card, "come on out. It's your time to shine." The little Winged Kuriboh appeared beside my head, scaring the guard holding me to my chair half to death. "See you boys later," I smirked, giving them a peace sign before walking quickly out of the restaurant, Kuri staying low at my feet to avoid being seen.

"Get back here!"

Turning my head, I saw Shawn running toward me with a Flare Corp. employee right behind him. "Time to start running," I thought as I raced down the street, Kuri right beside me. I ran through the park and up to the door of my house, barging through the front door before slamming and locking it.

"Em?" I looked up and saw Joey staring at me, Alec and Jay by his side.

"Shh," I ordered, motioning for them to sit down.

"Sis, what's happening?" Jay asked.

"Just something I need to deal with," I replied softly, bringing him into my lap. "And soon, I hope." Moving a hand over Jay's mouth before he asked another question, I heard Shawn walk up to our house and knock loudly.

"I know you're in there!" he called, still knocking.

"Blaze," I thought, pulling out his card. I quickly summoned him outside in his full-sized form behind Shawn and the employee. "Inferno Fire Blaze!" I thought, grinning as I heard Shawn's gasp of surprise. 3 seconds later, I heard Blaze roar before I heard 2 pairs of footsteps run away from the house. Letting out a sigh of relief, I helped Jay stand up before opening the front door. "Blaze, Kuri," I said, holding up both their cards. "Return."

"What was that all about?" Alec asked as I led Jay upstairs to his room.

"Flare Corp.," I replied, tucking Jay into bed before kissing his forehead. "They've always wanted to gain control of Sparkx Industries." I closed the door to Jay's room before kissing Joey goodnight and heading into my own room. "I'll deal with it later. Night, Alec."

"Night, Em," Alec said as he closed my door and I fell asleep.


End file.
